


Terrible Judgment

by LittleDidTheyKnow



Category: Daredevil (TV)
Genre: Creepy Behavior, Eventual Smut, F/M, Feeling powerless, Fluff, Stalking, eventual angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-19
Updated: 2017-07-04
Packaged: 2018-11-15 23:04:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 30,812
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11241141
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LittleDidTheyKnow/pseuds/LittleDidTheyKnow
Summary: Karen meets a man who isn’t what he seems. Daredevil saves her once, but after her life is threatened a second time, she helps her vigilante try to find him. Just when she thinks she's safe, he blackmails her with information that could endanger everyone at Nelson and Murdock, and she has to make a choice: her safety, or protecting the two men she loves more than anything.Takes place in early summer before Season 2.CHAPTER 1:Karen's reservations about a man are realized after she brings him to meet her friends. On her way home she is attacked while talking about her horrible night on the phone.Thank God she is unknowingly on the line with Daredevil himself.





	1. Gut Feeling

_Thank God for Josie's._

Karen Page never thought the words would enter her mind, but after the last few months, Josie’s was practically a getaway compared to the office.

To say that Nelson & Murdock had been exhausting its resources would be an understatement. The team had been taking on more clients, and even though they didn’t always have the ability to pay in currency, they were still clients. Matt, Karen, and Foggy were just happy to be helping people.

Each day left the three of them exhausted. They would go to their neighborhood watering hole to play pool and have drinks on most weekends. The theme of these nights was "anything but work," but it was hard to stick to since they didn't really have lives anymore.

Matt was especially exhausted because his work didn’t end with his day job. On most nights, he'd roam the streets as Daredevil, searching for those who needed help and those who needed a little vigilante justice. The city had been quiet since Fisk was put behind bars, and as much as Matt liked the break, he was waiting for an explosion of crime. He assumed various groups were scrambling to get back to the top and the chips were going to fall.

Karen had been on a few dates with an architect named Richard. They met when she was grabbing lunch for the office, and she liked him, but she was all for taking things slowly at this point. Dating wasn't a priority since she was constantly working, and she noticed that Richard was getting a little more insistent on spending time together. She couldn't figure out how she felt about that.

Richard was nice, and occasionally funny, but there was something about him that felt off, and she couldn't figure out what it was. Karen assumed it was because she had been a little more closed off these days. She'd spent the last few months trying to forget the winter. She still had trouble sleeping; thinking about losing Ben and having flashbacks of her multiple near-death experiences. And then there was the night she could never forget.

A chill night was just what Karen needed. The workday had already been so tedious that she and Matt had jumped at the prospect of going out when Foggy had mentioned it at lunch. Lunch was a loose term as they were all poring over legal documents in the conference room; fitting in bites between the flipping of pages.

Karen was back at her desk trying to catch up on their messy schedule when she got a text from Richard asking if she was free. The day before he had hinted at seeing each other over the weekend, and she felt bad for blowing him off. She texted him that tonight wouldn’t work because she was hanging out with friends, and he surprised her by asking if he could join.

She saw that Foggy and Matt were focused at their desks and yelled to them, "Hey, do you guys mind if I bring someone to Josie's tonight?"

"Wait, are you saying you have other friends?" Foggy yelled back. "Why would you need more than two, Karen? Tell me!"

Matt laughed from his desk. Karen walked to the space between both offices to end the shouting.

"Not that we don't already have enough testosterone at these shindigs, but it would be a male friend.

"I resent that, Karen. We both know that I am very attuned to my feminine side."

"I'm so sorry Foggy. I won't make the mistake of saying you are too manly again." Matt was laughing loudly now. "Anyway, this guy and I have gone on a few dates and he asked if he could come. It's really fine if you want to keep it just the three of us…"

"Of course we don’t mind," Foggy said.

"Sounds fine to me," Matt said, nodding.

"Listen, boys. This is not one of those 'grill the boyfriend' situations. We are not that serious. I wouldn't be bringing him if he hadn't asked."

"Do you even want him to come, Karen?" Foggy said, knowing his friend was a people pleaser. "You can always tell him no."

"I like my time with you guys. And Richard and I barely know each other… I'm still trying to figure out if my judgment sucks in these situations."

"We'll be good, Karen. I'm sure we'll all have a good time." Matt said, sensing her hesitation. "And we'll be happy to tell you if your judgment is terrible…"

"Thanks, Matt." She laughed.

They closed up shop an hour later and headed to Josie's. Foggy grabbed a pitcher of beer and four glasses. He filled three of them and they each grabbed a glass, leaving their pitcher and jackets in a booth. Karen set up the table and Foggy went first, breaking terribly. Both Karen and Matt started cracking up.

"Even I know that was, that was bad, Foggy." Matt stuttered as he drank his beer.

"You should get your hearing checked, Murdock. Because they all went in. I'll just re-rack since I won the first game single-handedly."

Matt heard a man enter the bar. Blood rushed to his cheeks as he looked over at Karen who was laughingly blocking Foggy in his attempt to reset the table.

"Nice try, Foggy," Karen said. "I call being on Matt's team!"

"You're always on Matt's team, Karen!" Foggy said.

"That's because together we make one decent pool player. And we are going to beat you for once," Karen laughed, grabbing a pool cue from the wall.

"Oh, hi!" She said, surprised as Richard hugged her from behind.

"Looks like the teams have changed," Foggy said. "I won't let you down, Matt."

Karen laughed. "Guys, this is Richard. Richard, this is Foggy Nelson and Matt Murdock."

The boys said hello and shook hands with Richard. Matt noticed that his handshake was really firm.

"We just broke, so you showed up at the right time." She told him, handing him a pool cue.

"This is a break?" He said, laughing. "Tell me it wasn't you, Karen."

"Hey! You realize no matter who says they did it, you are insulting them." She said, gently admonishing him.

"It _was_ pretty bad." Foggy jumped in. "Apparently I'll never be able live this failure down."

"Sorry, buddy," Richard said. "If it makes you feel better, you set me right up." He hit a ball into the corner pocket and chuckled. "Looks like we're stripes."

Richard hit one more ball in and then missed. He talked with Foggy about professional pool for a moment as Matt walked to the table. Karen put his hand on the cue ball and told him the location of the best solid ball. She moved his stick slightly so that he was lined up. Matt could sense Richard's focus was on them the entire time, and he seemed angry.

He listened to her instructions and gently hit the ball, sinking his shot. He typically played out the blind man routine for much longer before getting a ball in, but not today. Karen did a celebratory jump in the air. "Great job, Matt!"

"Looks like he doesn't need any help," Richard said, faking a chuckle.

" _Or_ I'm just an _amazing_ teacher!" Karen beamed, hitting Matt's hand in the air as he reached for a high-five.

She showed him the next ball to hit and he missed on purpose.

Richard put his hands on Karen's back as she leaned over to take her turn. "Don't miss, beautiful…" Matt couldn't tell if he was flirting with her or if he meant it.

As she prepared to hit the ball, Foggy walked over to Matt, his stick in his hand.

"What's wrong?"

"There's something about that guy that just seems… Off." He said, still listening to his heart rate.

"Is this a real observation, Matt, or are you just… a little jealous?"

Karen hit a striped ball and barely missed, not caring about the result. Richard seized up for a second and then faked a sympathetic smile as she looked at him.

Matt thought about Foggy's question as his friend took his turn for their team, missing again. He responded when Foggy returned. "No, Foggy. His heart rate was elevated when he saw you and Karen talking. He was pissed off. And why would you think I was jealous…?"

"I don't know, Matt…"

Richard walked over to Karen and put his hand on her face as he whispered something to her and Matt focused on something else so that he wasn't intruding. She smiled as he took his turn and sunk two balls again.

They played through a game and Karen went to grab another pitcher as the boys sat in their booth.

"Good game, Richard," Foggy said. "We're the ultimate underdogs, though. Don't get too comfortable."

Richard laughed and then got a little serious. "Can I ask you guys a question?" he asked as Karen sat the pitcher on the table and slid in next to him.

"Sure," Matt said, knowing from Richard's tone that it wasn't going to go well.

"Isn't it a little... for lack of a better word… Inappropriate for the bosses to be drinking and hanging out with their secretary?"

They were taken aback by the question. Foggy answered first. "Matt and I have been friends for years. And it'd be weird if the two of us hung out and ignored the only other person that worked with us…" He instantly froze, knowing he'd made a mistake.

"There's true friendship for you…" Karen said, trying her best not to show that she was hurt. She took a gulp of her beer.

"What Foggy meant to say, is that while we are in close quarters, it wouldn’t matter because Karen is a lovely person and we are lucky to see her every day. Of course, we'd want to spend time with her outside of work."

She smiled at Matt. "Thanks." She said quietly. Foggy was bright red, trying to make eye contact to apologize.

"I didn't mean to hit a nerve, guys. It's just interesting, is all." Richard said, taking a sip of his beer. "My office definitely has a different dynamic."

"No worries" Foggy offered, but Matt could tell that he was on the verge of tears. Matt clenched his fist as he saw the small divide Richard was creating between Karen and Foggy. He knew it wouldn't last, but he didn't like it.

Richard changed the conversation to how hot it had been this early in the summer and they drank through their pitcher of beer, ready to start another game. They switched teams this time, Matt and Richard on one team and Foggy and Karen on the other. Karen broke and hit two balls in - one for each team.

"You're welcome." She said to the other team, with a bow. Foggy pulled her into a hug and she warmed up immediately.

"I'm so sorry about what I said. It didn't come out right-" He whispered to her. "I was trying to justify something that didn't need to be justified."

"I know, Foggy," she said. "And you would cry yourself to sleep every night if I wasn't your friend."

"That's the only life I knew before I met Karen Page.” She laughed as she took her follow up shot and almost made another ball in.

Richard's heart rate became elevated again as he listened to their conversation and took his turn, missing. He went over to the stool next to Matt and sat down as Foggy moved around the table to find his best position. Richard subtly stuck his pool cue out and Foggy tripped over it, catching himself on the table.

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry Foggy! Are you ok?" He said as Foggy shook it off and took his shot. Karen noticed Matt's very readable face. He was angry. She hadn't seen what had happened, but Foggy acted like everything was ok and took a shot, making it in.

When Foggy's turn was over, Matt stood up and Foggy met him on the other side of the table. He leaned over to help Matt line up his ball. "Alright, I think that was on purpose." He whispered to him.

Matt nodded, taking a shot and hitting his ball in.

"Man, with the help we are getting from the other team, we may just win this." Richard laughed.

"We don't typically care about the score," Matt said to his teammate.

"I can see why," Richard muttered under his breath.

The rest of the game was relatively uneventful. Richard put on the nice guy routine again and flirted with a guarded Karen. Matt moved his team's balls into poor positions on purpose, causing him and Richard to lose. Karen was declared the ultimate winner with two games under her belt.

"Well, kids. I have to go." Matt yawned. "Have a good night." He shook Richard’s hand more firmly than he had done the first time and left.  The trio finished their third pitcher of beer, and followed twenty minutes later.

They exited the bar and Foggy did a fake hat tilt and said goodnight. Karen and Richard walked silently for a few blocks.

"Is something bothering you, Karen?" He asked, and Karen thought his tone didn’t sound very genuine.

"I don't know..." they waited at a crosswalk. "I feel you made everything awkward with that question about why the boys about hang out with me. Why would you even ask that?"

"It's a completely valid question, Karen. If my company found out that I flirted and went out with my inferiors, there'd be a very interested HR rep in my office the next morning." He scoffed. “What kind of lawyers are they if they don't know that they're opening themselves up to a lawsuit?"

" _Wow_." She said as they crossed the street.

"You heard Foggy, if it weren't just the _three_ of you…"

"He didn't mean that.” She was getting angry now. “First off, they are great lawyers. And I'm not going to sue them for getting a drink with me."

"Yeah, but they don't know that." He said petulantly. She stopped and they moved out of the walkway.

"Actually, they _do,_ because they know _me_. And talking with them isn't 'flirting.' They flirt more with each other than they do with me." She took a breath, infuriated. "It's incredibly sexist to assume that we can't be friends because I'm a female."

He turned bright red at her bluntness. But she wasn't finished. "…and they don't think of me as their 'inferior.' I'm integral to that office."

"I'm sure you are." he said sarcastically.

" _And_ that's my cue to leave…" She said turning away. He grabbed her arm and turned  
her back around, angering her further. She removed his hand from her bicep.

"C'mon Karen, don't get upset. We're just having a conversation."

"Well, nonetheless, I'm going to call it a night."

"Fine," he said, annoyed. He turned away and went the other direction. She walked home angrily. When she was two blocks from where they had argued, she called Matt.

He was running along a roof in the other direction when he felt the vibration. He stopped and answered.

"Hey," he said, making sure that no one could hear their conversation.

"Sorry to call you immediately after seeing you, Matt, but…"

"Karen, nothing has changed. You can call me anytime about anything."

She smiled, calming down slightly and then remembered the reason for her call. "Tonight was… weird." She said. "Did you notice anything off about Richard?"

He considered the best approach to this question. "I mean, maybe he was nervous, Karen, but…"

"He was kind of an asshole?"

"Yeah," he said, a little too quickly.

"Well, that settles it."

He sighed in relief. Thank God he didn't have to bring this up himself. He knew more than she could imagine about her date.

"Thanks for the honesty, Matt."

"It's no problem. We can get breakfast tomorrow if you want to talk about it…" He heard her keys jingling as she reached up to unlock the door to her apartment.

"Breakfast sounds nice, but we don't need to talk about this shitty nigh-- What are you doing here?" She said to someone next to her.

"Matt, I've... I've got to go," she said, faking like she was hanging up her phone. Richard had grabbed her hand as she opened the door.

"Giving the boss a goodnight call after spending the entire day with him?" He heard Richard say.

"I can call whoever the hell I want, Richard. Why are you here?"

"I was coming back to apologize." He said, rudely.

"Well, you're doing a great job." She said, having none of it.

"If you weren't proving me right, it'd make it much easier…" Matt tensed up, wanting  
to run toward them, but trying to listen, knowing Karen hadn't hung up on purpose.

"I'm losing my patience, Richard. What do you want?"

"It's just interesting..."

"What does that mean?" She was becoming more and more angry with each second that passed. 

"Well, you clearly like being the center of attention. Spending a night with three men who are all interested in you."

"Wow. Did you forget that you invited _yourself_ tonight? She noticed her mace wasn't on her keys anymore and assumed it was at the bottom of her purse. She took a firm approach to try to get rid of him. "It's time for you to go. Please don't call me again."

"I'm not done talking about this, Karen."

She could tell he was relentless, and no longer felt safe going inside. "Ok, let's go to a more public place and we can talk about it."

Matt was shaking in anger. Now he had to listen to where they might go. He was several blocks away and didn't want to risk losing them.

"Here is fine," he said, and she softly cried out as he grabbed her wrist and shoved her inside the entryway. She dropped her purse and it blocked the door from closing.

That was enough information for Matt to jump into action, and he sprinted toward her house.

"Richard, you are making me really uncomfortable. I'm sorry you had a bad night, but this clearly isn't working. You are jealous of my friends and I'm not going to stop hanging out with them."

"You know, Karen, this 'good girl' routine is tedious..."

He twisted her wrist in his hand and she turned her body to try to stop the pain.

"Stop it, Richard!" She eyed the door and calculated her chances of opening it and running. She could also yell and wake her neighbors, but Richard was too close for comfort. It still seemed like her best option.

"I'm sick of women doing whatever the fuck they want, Karen."

"You can't put your hands on someone just because they don't bend to your will."

He pushed her against the wall. “I’m pretty sure you're wrong…”

Karen was scared now. She tried to push away, but he gripped her even tighter. "Richard, please let me go." 

Matt was running on the sidewalk near her apartment. He could hear them in her hallway. He ran to the front door, opening it quietly and finding them against the wall. He  yanked Richard off of her, catching him completely off guard. 

Richard shouted an expletive as he hit the wall behind them.

He looked up at Daredevil, his eyes wide. "You need to leave. Now." Daredevil said, masking his voice.

Richard stumbled as he tried to get up, giving up as he hunched over to cough. "There is no need for you here, buddy.” He said in the most saccharine voice he could muster. “Ms. Page and I are just having a conversation. I'm sure there are actual people who _need_ saving out there right now..."

“He isn't the one I want to leave, Richard.”

“You heard Ms. Page,” Daredevil said, shaking with anger. "Walk away."

He turned around and looked down at Karen, his hand on her face. "Are you ok?" He said. She opened her mouth to respond when a fist connected with his jaw.

Anger spread across Karen's face as Daredevil recoiled. He turned as she flung herself toward Richard, shoving him into the staircase.

Richard pulled a knife out of his pocket and Daredevil grabbed Karen with his left hand and pushed her behind him, backing up to block her. "You don't want to do that,"  he said sternly.

"Four men in one night, Karen?" Richard sputtered. "I knew the ‘good girl’ act was bullshit."

Matt punched Richard in the face and grabbed the hand holding his knife and twisted his wrist behind his back, dislocating his elbow. The knife dropped and Daredevil opened the door, throwing him over the steps and onto the sidewalk. Richard curled up in pain as Karen called the police. She leaned against the doorway and looked to the ground as she hung up and Daredevil walked over to her.

"Are you hurt?" He asked, lifting her chin. She smiled at him and wrapped her arms around him in a hug, and he almost lost his balance. He didn’t expect this show of affection. The police pulled up and she whispered into his ear. "I know you won't stick around… but can you come back after the police leave? Meet me on my roof?"

"Um," he said looking over to the police car. "Sure." She kissed his cheek and he stood stunned. He heard the car door open and walked down the steps, leaning over Richard.

"You're lucky the police are here, asshole." She heard him say. "If you ever come near her again, I'll do more than dislocated your elbow. You can count on that." He walked away and turned the corner as the police exited their vehicle.

 

 


	2. Rooftops and Revelations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Karen has her first real conversation with Daredevil.

Karen couldn't believe it. He said he'd come back. She went from practically giddy to indignant as the police approached her and she was quickly reminded of her shitty situation. She spent an hour talking with her as Richard sat handcuffed in the back of their vehicle. The police grabbed his knife from her hallway and drove away after taking a statement. She quickly gathered her things and dropped her purse off in her apartment, heading up to the roof to see if her vigilante was there.

He wasn't.

She wasn't surprised. She hadn't given him much of a choice, asking him as he was trying to leave. She didn't know what she'd even wanted from him up here, anyway. The fact that Daredevil didn’t save the same person multiple times wasn’t lost on her. She just wanted to be able to thank him this time.

Karen walked to the corner of the roof, sitting down and pulling her knees up to her legs. It had been a long day. She sat her phone on the ground and leaned against the wall, breathing in the fresh air and falling asleep.

She woke with a start as Daredevil landed on the roof. When she realized that he was there, she instantly felt butterflies in her stomach. He walked over to her slowly. "Hi." She said as he extended his hand to her and helped her stand up. She winced, forgetting that her wrist was injured.

"Hi." He said back. They stood there quietly, and the silence was killing her. He removed his gloves and placed them on the ground, and she felt a surge of excitement at seeing even a small part of him that he hid from the world. He surprised her by reaching over to her arm and running his fingers over it. She twitched slightly when he ended at her wrist. "I don't think anything is broken, but he definitely did some damage. Are you ok?" He asked, masking his voice slightly.

She placed her other hand over his and he didn't remove it. "I'm fine. I'm more worried about you. She lifted her other hand up to his cheek and touched it gently. "I didn't see if he got you with his knife."

"He didn’t. I kind of lost it on him before he had the opportunity. Plus the suit is pretty good against knives."

"I was going to say it looked like an improvement from the tight black one. Can I…?" She asked as she reached her hand out toward his chest. He nodded and she ran her fingers over the unique material. She removed her hand from his suit and looked up at him.

"I'm not really sure why I'm here, Ms. Page." He said.

"Yeah, I'm sorry about that. I didn't really give you much of a choice…" She said nervously. "I just… this is the second time you've saved my life…"

"I remember." He said, giving her a smile.

"…And it's just… I wanted the opportunity to say 'thank you.'"

"You could have told me right then…" He said, teasing her slightly.

"That's the thing though…" She closed the gap between them and touched his chin again. He turned his lips into her palm and closed his eyes, forgetting that he needed to maintain a sense of restraint. He got a hold of himself after a moment and turned his face away, her palm still cupping his jaw. She could feel the wetness from his lips on her skin and trembled. "I wanted more than a few seconds to thank the man who has risked his life to save mine. Twice."

"You don't owe me anything, Ms. Page. I was happy to--" She cut him off, pressing her lips to his. He opened his mouth automatically and slipped his tongue inside of her mouth. He grabbed her by the waist and pulled her close to him, needing her in his arms. When he came to his senses, he pulled away from her as quickly as he had welcomed her lips, stepping back.

"I shouldn't have done that." He said.

"You didn't. _I_ did." She responded, stepping toward him again.

"Even so… I should go." He tried to pass off like he was firm in this decision and wouldn't actually welcome her back into his arms if she tried again.

She lifted her arms into the air and tried to convince him to stay. "Please don't just yet. I promise I'll be good."

"You have done nothing wrong, Ms. Page…"

"Can I ask you a question?"

"That depends."

"How _is_ it that you've saved my life twice?"

"I was just in the right place at the right time."

"The thing is, _Daredevil_ , I don't typically have the _good_ kind of luck..."

"Then what would it be, Ms. Page?" He said, tilting his head, trying to figure out what she was getting at. Her heart rate was fairly normal for a person who was talking to a vigilante.

"I'm not sure…" She said, smiling. "Oh my God, Matt! I totally forgot!"

"What?" He said, his voice breaking as he tried to figure out if she just called him by his real name.

She bent down and grabbed her phone, lifting back up to his level. "I was on the phone with my friend Matt when I was cornered… It seems strange that he wouldn't make sure I was ok…"

"Maybe he didn't hear what happened." Daredevil said, realizing there was an actual reason for not showing up to her apartment as Daredevil. Of course he would have rushed over here to make sure she was ok. He tried to find the button on his phone that would turn off the ringer. He couldn't tell if his attempt had worked through his thick pants.

"Can you just give me a second?" she asked. She hit redial and he prayed for his phone to stay silent. Then his pants started vibrating.

"Now that's interesting." She said, nodding and reaching her around him to his back pocket. She pulled out his cell phone and held both phones in front of him.

"It seems like you have my friend's phone." She said, canceling the call and smiling. "This is one crazy conspiracy, and I for one think we need to get to the bottom of it."

He touched the hand that was holding his phone. "Karen, I…."

She slipped it back into his hand and he stood there, stunned. "If you don't have any place to be, I think Daredevil and Karen Page should have a conversation…." She bent over and grabbed his gloves, standing up and taking his hand in hers.

Karen headed to her kitchen as they entered her apartment. Matt walked to the couch and sat down, not knowing what was coming next. She was a little nervous, but still calm… She seemed almost happy. She emerged from the kitchen with a glass of water and an ice pack and he drank the entire glass as he nervously waited for her to say something.

She took the glass from him and sat it on an end table, leaning down as she ran her fingers over the top of his mask. He placed his hands on them, guiding them down to where it ended, giving her the ok to unmask him. She lifted it off of him slowly and gasped. Knowing his identity couldn't remove the surprise from this unveiling.

"I can't believe it…" she said, holding the mask in her hand and looking back over to him.

"Yeah…" he said, nervously. "How long did you know?"

"Unfortunately for you, I had an inkling from the moment Daredevil came through my apartment door." She ran her fingers over the eye coverings. "I put it together as I was talking to the police. We had just been on the phone and there you were. Sorry that saving my life spoiled your secret."

"I don’t care about that. Keeping it from you was killing me anyway."

"How can you…?" She said, sinking into the couch. He grabbed the ice pack and placed it on her wrist, rubbing the part of the skin that was uncovered.

"I have enhanced senses… From the chemicals that blinded me in my accident."

"Uh-huh." she said, dazed. Like something that crazy could make sense.

"It makes it so that I can make out a sort of… image of my surroundings. My own special kind of radar."

She nodded silently. Then she lifted the ice pack and dropped it in front of him and he caught it mid-air, placing it back on her wrist.

"Holy shit." She said, taking a breath. "So you've always been… Ever since I've known you…"

"Yes." He said awkwardly.

"So tonight, when Foggy tripped… And you looked angry. You knew that he was falling as it was happening?"

"And I knew why it had happened," Matt said, anger in his voice.

"Which was?"

"Richard stuck his pool cue out on purpose as Foggy was walking by. I almost flipped that stool he was sitting on after he did that."

"That asshole."

"That's not even the half of it. He was pissed the moment you walked in - when he saw you laughing with Foggy."

"How did you know? You can't read minds too, can you?" She said, genuinely wondering.

He smiled at that notion. "No. But blood rushed to his cheeks and his heart rate went up."

"You can.. wow…" She rubbed her wrist, looking down. "Enhanced senses…" She said, drifting off, trying to figure out what else that meant. "So you can tell what I'm _feeling_ right now?" She asked.

"Yeah.." he said, apologetically.

"So you've always known that I…" Her eyes filled with tears.

"Karen, I'm so sorry. I am able to tune things out most of the time. I am inundated with sounds and scents. It's not like I'm _trying_ to invade your privacy."

"Did you know I was going to kiss you tonight?"

"Actually, no. I think I was more focused on being careful about giving myself away. I've never spent more than a few minutes with anyone as Daredevil before, let alone someone who knew me personally…" He shook his head. "I was distracted. Just like when that asshole hit me in the face. Normally I'd be able to see it coming, but I was focusing on you."

"Well we can go back to acting like the kiss didn't happen," she said, quickly, her cheeks turning bright red. She looked down at her wrist again, humiliated. "I was pretty sure you were you and I shouldn't have taken advantage of the situation."

A pained expression spread across his face. "Do you want to act like it didn't happen?" he touched her hand and she blinked away tears, focusing on it. She shook her head, angry for over position she’d put herself in.

He lifted her chin. "Because I don't." He said, surprising her with a kiss. She melted into him as he ran his fingers through her hair. When he left her lips she realized she had forgotten what they were even talking about. As it came back to her, she sat in shock, trying to figure out what would come next.

"So when your 'car accident' happened… Is that when Foggy found out?"

"Yeah. I haven't been doing this for long, but I've had these abilities since before I'd known him."

"Well, that explains a lot…"

"Yeah, I feel terrible that he found out that way." He said, shaking his head.

"What way?"

"He couldn't get through to me, so he found a way into my apartment. He found a sliced up Daredevil bleeding right in front of him."

" _Sliced_ up?" She asked, horrified.

He sighed over his poor choice of words. "I haven't seen a fight that bad before or sense, Karen. It was a freak situation. "

She shook her head, imagining what Foggy had seen.

"Can I see?"

"Are you sure you want to?"

"You shut me out from everything, Matt. I think it's time for you to put it all on the table."

He nodded and stood up, pulling the suit down so that it hung at his waist. She lifted his undershirt up and he raised his arms, allowing her to pull it off of him.

It was a lot to take in. Karen had to look past his abs to focus on the numerous scars and fresh bruises on his chest and stomach. She let out a small sob as the tears started to flow freely now. "Oh my God, Matt." She said, and he pulled her against his chest as she cried into his shoulder. 

She pulled away from him as she calmed down and ran her fingers over the larger scars. "These all look similar," she said touching the scars that Nobu had given him.

"No wonder he lost his shit," she said, looking up at him. "I can't believe you kept this from me, Matt."

"This is all new to me. And I didn't want to bring you guys into it, knowing what I was doing was illegal. And knowing how dangerous Fisk was."

She turned her head away from him, her heart racing. He touched her face and brought her back to him.

"Karen, I've tried to keep space between us because I didn’t want to lie to you, but…

"But what?"

"I want you to take some time to think about how this affects… us. You have every right to be done with me, but I'll do whatever it takes to earn your trust again."

"Matt, I could never be done with you. But please just promise me one thing."

"What's that?"

"Please stop keeping everything to yourself. I know now, so you have no reason to hide things from me, ok?"

"I can do that."

"Ok… Then I think we'll be fine."

"I hope so."

Karen yawned and looked at her clock. It was 2 AM. Matt took the hint and stood up, sensing her disappointment that he was leaving. She got up and helped gather his suit accessories as he got dressed. He put the gloves on and held the mask in his hand as he headed toward the door.

She walked him out, leaning against the wall as he reached for the door. He paused as he turned the knob, changing his mind and turning around.

"Karen…"

"Yes, Matt?"

"No matter what happens here, I want you to know. You were never alone." He slid his arm in the gap between her and the wall and she looked up at him confused. "I've wanted to kiss you since the night we met." He said, connecting his lips to hers once more. When he pulled away, she caught her breath and couldn't get rid of the smile on her face. He placed the mask on his head and exited her apartment.

She went to bed that night filled with conflicting emotions. She couldn't believe that the man she had feelings for was keeping such a secret from her. But she could understand his reasons. And she was happy that everything was out in the open. Karen didn't know what would happen next with Matt Murdock, but he had somehow made her forget about the terrible night she'd had. She went to sleep smiling.

 


	3. Breakfast

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt shows up at Karen's apartment the morning after. They go on their first date.

Karen woke to a knock on her door. She blinked her eyes open and saw that it was 9:00. Her natural clock typically woke her up sooner than this, but last night had been anything but normal. She hopped out of bed and looked through the peephole in her door. She smiled and opened it, glad to see his face.

"Hi Matt," her voice was filled with surprise, but he was grateful that she seemed happy to see him.

"Still up for breakfast?" He hugged her and she shivered as she felt his hands against her cotton nightgown.

"Breakfast?" She forgot they had made a plan before everything went to hell. "Of course. I'm sorry. I can’t believe I-"

"You had a lot going on," he said, pointing out the obvious. "We don't have to go if you don't want to…"

"No— no, of course I'd like to go. Just give me a few minutes to get ready." She gestured to the couch and then reverted back to her usual explanation of what she had just indicated. "You can sit if you'd like."

"I know." He said, kissing her forehead, reminding her that he knew that she'd offered.

"We're going to have to go over exactly _what_ you know, Murdock."

"I'm an open book." He smiled and put his legs on the couch. She loved when he was like this, but it always caught her off guard. She didn’t see it often, but some days he went from demure to confident, typically after a few drinks. She grabbed some clothes and changed in the bathroom, multitasking so that she didn’t keep him waiting. After brushing her teeth and hair, she put on some deodorant and a small dab of perfume. When she exited, she saw a goofy smile on his face.

"What are you so happy about?" She hovered over him and stared at those two lips that were gifts from God.

He grabbed her hands and pulled her into his lap, kissing her. When he pulled away from her, she let out a simple, “Oh."

He peppered her with kisses, smiling each time he pulled away.

"If you don't stop being so adorable, my cheeks are going to be red all day." She forced herself to get up. She knew that if she didn't do it now, she'd never want to leave.

"I'll try my hardest, Page. But nothing could take this away from me."

He held out his hand and she took it, grabbing her purse as they left. She walked him to a diner a few blocks away, hearing her stomach growl the moment they walked through the door.

Karen sat down on the far end of the booth and he scooted in next to her. Her favorite server was running between tables and waved to her with a smile. "Take your time, Linda." She said, nodding in acknowledgment.

"Thanks, darling," Linda responded, nodding at her with knowing eyes over the handsome man she'd brought with her.

Karen chuckled and looked over at Matt, who smiled knowingly. "Alright, Murdock, give me an idea as to the extent of these abilities," she whispered.

"Ok…" He scanned the room and looked for an easy mark. "The man in the second booth from the door is recovering from a cold. His nose is rubbed raw from tissues and he has the sniffles." She looked at him and saw that his nose was bright red.

He pointed outside to a man in a fedora walking down the street. "That man is incredibly nervous. He's already sweated through his button-up shirt, and he's got whiskey on his breath."

"Wow."

"The family in the booth on the other side of the cash register just came from swimming lessons." Karen looked over at them and saw that the kid's hair was wet. "The little girl is eating French toast - and it smells amazing. That's what I'll be having today. The dad shaved this morning and nicked himself. The woman is wearing a cotton sweater and it's missing a button."

"Matt that is crazy."

"That enough?"

"One more." She was enjoying their game.

"There's a couple on a first date at one of the booths. She smells like lavender and lemons and they're whispering to each other like they have a secret. Her heart has been racing since they sat down and he is reaching to hold her hand. I think he's about to kiss her."

"Where?" She was too busy looking behind aroun their booth and didn’t even notice him grabbing her hand.

He pulled her close and kissed her. As they broke apart, she let out a giggle that she would never have believed came from her own mouth if she hadn’t felt it in her throat.

She was leaning against his shoulder, his hand around her waist. She touched his face with her left hand. "You're pretty smooth, Murdock."

"Hello sunshine," Linda interrupted, setting two glasses of water and a cup of coffee on their table.

"Hi, Linda. Pretty busy today?"

"Sure is, sugar. Who do we have here?"

"This is Matt. Matt, meet the amazing Linda."

"Hello, Linda. Nice to meet you." He said, giving the vintage Murdock smile that made Karen melt.

Karen added cream to her coffee and stirred a few times more than was necessary. "What can I grab for you two?" 

Matt got french toast like he'd promised, and Karen added that he wanted strawberries and whipped cream. Karen ordered bacon, eggs, and hash browns.

"And to drink, honey?" She asked Matt.

"Coffee would be great. Thank you."

Linda grinned and gave Karen a thumbs up. She snuggled against Matt's shoulder and they listened to people starting out their day. They had known each other long enough to be comfortable in the silences, and Karen smiled at the thought that she finally knew what it felt like to lay on his shoulder.

Linda brought their food and Matt dug into his french toast. "I was right." He said, his mouth slightly full. "this whipped cream is amazing! They use real vanilla bean…"

"I knew you'd like it. I get that every other time I come here."

She took a sip of her coffee and remembered the night before. "I wonder if Richard is still at the police station."

Matt swallowed his bite and shook his head. "I went to the precinct that they took him to. There was no sign of him there."

She shook her head. "Well, there wasn't much for me to hope for anyway. It's not like they'd keep him in there forever."

"Did they mention anything about an order of protection?"

"They did. They said that would be the best bet."

"I thought it was strange that he was out this early. An order of protection should have been a condition of his release." He sighed. "We'll make sure everything was done properly. And Karen, I'll help with whatever you need. If you want to stay at my place again, I can take the couch."

"It won't be necessary, Matt. I can handle it. But I agree that we should take legal steps."

He ran his hand over her head and through her hair. "Everything will be alright. Hopefully, he won't even come back."

"Yeah," she said looking out the window. "Hopefully."

*****

They finished their breakfast and Matt walked her back to her apartment. "What do you have going on today?" He asked as they made their way up the stairs.

"I have some errands to run for the office, and I need to grab groceries."

"Take a day off Karen. Your boss insists."

"My boss appreciates it when we have basic necessities, like paper. And what are you going to do, Murdock? Relax?"

"I was going to go to the office," He chuckled.

"Maybe you should take your own advice." She said as she touched his jaw where a bruise was starting to show. “I’m so sorry about this.”

“Karen, you have nothing to be sorry for.”

"I don’t know Matt. I keep feeling like this could have been prevented. I should never have...” She drifted off as she looked at the colors forming on his skin.

“This wasn’t your fault. And I’d do everything the same way, including making sure you were ok." He smiled. "...and taking a fist to the face.”

“Oh really?”

“Really." He kissed her and took her worry away.

"Thank you for breakfast." She said dreamily.

"How do you feel about another date?"

"I'd love that."

Matt walked away with a slight skip in his step. He was happier than he'd been in years if he was being honest with himself.

He was so happy that he didn’t notice the angry man hiding in the shadow of a building on the other side of the street.


	4. Don't Get Comfortable

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Karen can't shake the feeling that she's being watched. 
> 
> Nelson and Murdock learn some disconcerting news as they try to take legal steps to keep Karen safe.

Foggy glared at the the liquid in his mug as he over stirred it angrily. He didn’t realize he hadn’t said anything for a solid minute after Karen told him what happened.

“Foggy?” She moved her hand in front of his face and he snapped out of his angry haze.

“Matt was right.”

“I was right about what?” Matt said as he put his coat on the coat rack and met them in the kitchen.

“About that asshole.” He walked toward him and spoke his next words very carefully. “You need to do something about this.” He was so upset that he didn’t realize that his suggestion would raise awareness of his vigilante best friend.

"He's the reason I'm still alive, Foggy."

"I thought you said that Daredevil… oh." He covered his mouth.

"She knows, Foggy."

"Alright then. That makes my life easier." He hugged Karen. "I'm sorry I kept it from you, Karen. I really hated lying to you."

"You have nothing to be sorry for, Foggy. I blame everything entirely on Matt." She laughed.

"Well as long as we know who's at fault here," Matt said guiltily.

That was Sunday. They discussed the next steps to take against Richard and got the ball rolling. Foggy called in a favor to a friend at the DA’s office who promised to fit them into the DA’s schedule on Monday. The three of them had dinner that night and drinks at Matt's place. Foggy walked Karen back to her apartment and Karen fell asleep the moment she lay her head on her pillow. She knew that Monday was going to be a long day, but she had a date with Matt that night, so she figured that was the best motivation to get through a rough eight hours.

Monday morning was gloomy and fit Karen’s mood. She walked into the office early, feeling sluggish and in desperate need of coffee. She sipped from her cup as she stared out the window of Nelson and Murdock, glancing at the people walking past the buildings across the street. Then she saw an ominous figure staring up at her from a bus bench. She dropped her coffee cup and left the mess to run down the stairs to see if he was really there.

A bus had pulled up in front of the bench, and she forced herself to stay across the street in order to keep distance between them. But the bus pulled away revealing an empty bench. Tears came to her eyes as she questioned her sanity and walked back inside thinking that it must have been her imagination.

Foggy and Matt walked through the door laughing a few minutes later as she cleaned up the glass shards from the floor. Matt stopped laughing and made a bee-line for her desk.

"What happened?"

"Nothing, Matt." She said, standing up and dumping the shards into the trash. "It's nothing."

She saw that that was not an acceptable answer. "I thought I saw him about ten minutes ago—" Matt immediately turned to the door and walked out of the office and down the steps. Foggy and Karen followed him.

"Over on the bench?" he said, pointing to the exact location across the street. She just nodded. _So he really had been here,_ she thought.

“I’m going to go call Angela right now,” Foggy said with a sense of urgency. They didn’t know the time they were meeting that day, but Angela said the moment she got to work, she’d call to let them know.

Foggy hung up the phone angrily and made a second call. Karen was in Matt’s office going over his schedule for the day, and he zoned out as he listened to whatever was making him angry. He shook his head defeated.

“What is it?” She asked him as Foggy slammed his phone into the receiver. He walked over to Matt’s office and sighed.

“Angela said that a Richard Smith wasn’t booked over the weekend.”

“That can’t be right. I saw him in the back of the police car…” 

Matt just shook his head. I think we should go down to the police station, Karen. Maybe he didn’t tell you his real name.”

*****

  
Matt couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

He held Karen’s hand as the Brett Mahoney told them that the vehicle carrying Richard responded to another emergency before they made it to the station. And that Richard had escaped.

"Those vehicles are locked.” Matt said angrily. “How in the hell could he get out?”

Mahoney shook his head sadly. “They think the door must have been ajar. It’s the only thing that makes sense.”

Karen drifted off as Matt spoke with the Sergeant. She smiled angrily as she thought over the ludicrous nature of the situation. That bastard had somehow escaped police in handcuffs. And the first chance he got, he went to her workplace. He wasn’t going to stop.

Mahoney wrote down all of the information Karen had on Richard and Matt walked her to her apartment. She didn't even notice where they were going until they were on her front steps.

"What are we doing here?"

"I think we should take the day off. Pack some items and I’ll take you to my place. Are you alright with that?" She held her keys in her hand and sighed. "Or you can stay at Foggy's. He offered as well."

"Your place is fine. But honestly, Matt, you have too much to do today. Why don’t you just head back to the office and I’ll meet you later tonight?"

"I don’t know, Karen. I’m really worried about you.” He could tell that she needed some space and he conceded. “How about I come over after work and we’ll leave together?"

"Ok. I'm sure it's fine, Matt. You really don't have to go out of your way."

He took her face in his hands and kissed her. "Karen, I would do anything for you. And I want you to be as safe as possible."

"If you insist. He's nowhere near, right?"

"Nope. Already checked. Do you want me to go up with you just in case?"

"I trust you. I think I'm going to take a nap while you're gone. I feel drained."

"That's a good idea. I'm going to leave work early. Try to relax, ok?"

"You don't have to do that. I'll be ready when you get here. Please don't stress, Matt."

Matt kissed her and waited until he heard the locks click in her apartment. He walked around the building so that he was absolutely sure that there were no signs of Richard and left with the intjin of returning as soon as possible.

Karen was happy to have a moment to herself. Foggy and Matt had been treating her like she was made of glass, and the amount of extra attention she was getting was starting to drive her crazy. She packed her bag so that she was ready once Matt arrived and stretched out on her bed. It didn't take long to fall asleep.

She woke up to an alarm 45 minutes later and coughed as she smelled gas. She jumped out of bed and opened the window next to her, then turned the burners to her stove off. She opened another window and banged on the other apartment doors to get her neighbors to evacuate. There was only one person in her building and they called 911 as she pounded on the last door. The police and fire department arrived and made sure there wasn’t a gas leak, but she already knew that wasn’t the case.

She hadn’t used her stove in weeks. And she definitely didn’t leave all four burners on.

An officer came outside and proved her suspicion. Someone had been in her apartment. They assumed they’d entered and through the fire escape since the locks hadn’t been broken and she left the window cracked. She couldn't believe she didn't hear anything. He had set her alarm so that she woke up soon enough, telling them that he didn't want to kill her. That didn't make her feel better.

Karen was sitting on the corner as Matt and Foggy walked up. She had called the office once the police arrived. Matt tried to hide the fact that he was seething in anger. He bent down on his knee and stroked her face. "Karen, I'm going to go talk to the police. Is it ok with you if Foggy walks you back to my apartment?"

She nodded her head. Matt handed Foggy his keys and they walked silently back to Matt’s apartment. Foggy took a call from Mahoney as she curled up on the couch. She felt like she was in a vacuum, sound was hard to decipher and she barely understood Foggy as he spoke to her.

Mahoney asked him to come down to the station to run through some mugshots in hopes that Richard had been charged before. He offered to wait until Matt showed up, but she told him she’d be alright.

She hugged him before he left and walked over to Matt’s bar to pour herself a drink. An hour later, Matt walked through the door.

"Hey beautiful." He said, setting her bag on the floor.

"Hi." she stood up quickly, which gave her a head rush.

"There was no trace of him at the apartment. And I couldn’t find him anywhere in the area.”

"Great."

"You've been drinking." He said, walking over to her.

"Yup."

He ran his hand through her hair and pulled her into his arms.

"I know this is really scary, but we're going to get this guy. I promise."

She nodded, walking back over to the couch and sitting down. "I've been trying to get this shit out of my head, but it's really difficult."

He sat next to her. "I wish I knew the right words to say to make you feel better. I promise I'll keep you safe. But I know you want to be able to do that yourself."

She looked down at her feet. "I never should have dated anyone. This was such a mistake."

"I was worried you'd say that."

"Well, except for you, of course…" she stroked his face and kissed him. He let himself give in, wrapping his arms around her as she moved her leg over him and straddled him.  
  
He rubbed her back as he pulled away from her lips. "That's not what I meant. I was worried that bastard would take away your autonomy."

She hugged him, not expecting that answer. "I'll get it back." She ran her hands through his hair. "I just want to forget this terrible day."

Karen kissed him again, welcoming his tongue into her mouth. Matt ran his hands over her neck and massaged the base of her head with his fingers as she rolled her hips over him. He moved his hands up her waist and pushed her onto him as he raised his pelvis, and she sighed hungrily. She moved to his neck and slowly kissed him as he tilted his head back. Then she found his earlobe and nibbled on it, causing him to groan.

"Karen, I…" He pulled away and let out a labored sigh. She looked at him, perplexed. "We can't do this right now."

"Why not?" She kissed him on the lips once more and nearly broke his resolve. As she pulled away, he had to remind himself of why.

"Because you’re drunk and scared." He cupped her face in his hand. "This is not how I wanted our first time to go…"

She kissed him gently and smiled. The fact that he had thought about their first time together made her want him even more. "You are perfect, Matt Murdock."

"I think I've proven I'm quite the opposite on many occasions. Which is how I know you're drunk."

"That and you can read me like a book?"

"That too."

"You are too hard on yourself, Murdock. And the fact that you are so protective of me makes me want you more for some reason.” She smiled and kissed him again, sucking on his lip as she pulled away.

He ran his fingers through her hair as it ended. "As much as I hate saying it, tonight is not the night.”

"I know. I can wait a little while longer…"

"You want me that bad, huh?” He chuckled. “We've only been dating for a few days."

"Not to freak you out or anything, but I have wanted _this_ since we met, Murdock."

His pants became even more uncomfortable as she ran her fingers over his shirt buttons.. "Since you met Daredevil? Or since you met Matt Murdock?"

"Both…” She laughed. "It's funny how that works. I have thought about the both of you separately and you were always the same person. It's pretty impressive that you could have twice the hold on me without me even knowing it." She lowered herself on his lap and felt his arousal. He shuddered as she continued to move slowly, kissing him.

"That was never what I'd intended…" he said. She lifted off of him and sat next to him, laying against his chest.

"I know you can't help it. I'm sure you have this effect on many people. You're a superhero for God's sake."

"It wouldn't matter."

"Why?"

"Daredevil is celibate for obvious reasons. No one has so much as approached me before you did the other night. And even if they did, I'd get the hell out of there."

"I just caught you off guard?"

"You were just Karen Page."

She smiled. "So Daredevil is a good vigilante who doesn't want to take advantage. Why can't Matt Murdock be happy?"

"That is a long story…. I've always felt like I had too much insight into people's emotions, so I put space between me and anyone I was interested in. Foggy makes jokes about me being with tons of women, but in college, I was pretty quiet. I let myself give in a few times, but it always felt somewhat wrong."

"That's really sad."

"I opened up about my abilities to one woman, but she ran off after a couple of months and I never saw her again." She rubbed his hand with her fingers. "Anyway, law school and internships took up most of my time after that. And then I started running through the streets in a mask. I knew that connections could be made if someone saw how scarred up I am. Plus it's not exactly safe for someone to date a vigilante."

"What if they accepted that fact and didn't care?"

"It's hard, Karen. If anything happened to me… If they could prove that you knew that I was Daredevil… There could be legal ramifications. It would be even worse if someone connected you to me. They could use you as leverage, and I really couldn't live with myself if something happened to you. I haven't exactly worked this out…"

Karen nodded sadly. "I'm starting to think that I don't deserve happiness." She said, and he felt her heart rate increase. He placed his hand over her heart, his way of letting her know that he could tell something had changed.

"How can you believe that?"

"You're not the only one with secrets, Matt." Sher eyes welled with tears, and she turned away from him.

"Listen, you do don't have to tell me if you don't want to. But I'm here if you trust me enough."

"Matt, honestly, it would be in your best interest to just walk away from this anyway. I hate the thought that you are closed off from everyone, but someday, you'll realize that you need to be happy too. And you'll find the right person."

"What if that person is you?"

"You are too good to date me."

"And you think _I'm_ the one who is too hard on themselves?"

"Matt, I… I killed someone." She said the words aloud for the first time. The tears were flowing freely now. He held her hand and waited. Not passing judgment, just giving her the time she needed to tell him.

"You remember the man who brought us John Healy?"

"Yes. His name is Wesley. He's Fisk's right hand."

"Not anymore…"

He took a breath and she blinked away tears as spread across his face.

She continued, "he figured out that I went to Fisk's mother's retirement home. And he drugged me and brought me to some warehouse..."

"Oh Karen…"

"He was trying to find out what I knew and if I’d told anyone else. He left a gun on the table thinking I was still unable to move, and when he was distracted, I grabbed the gun and shot him." She took a gulp as she choked on her tears. "I emptied that gun on him."

He rubbed her hand in his, knowing she wasn't finished.

"Fisk made the connection to Ben and killed him because of me. And honestly, dealing with that has been way worse than killing James Wesley."

Tears were streaming down her face. Matt put his arm around her and she lay her head on his shoulder.

"Karen, I'm sure that taking a life is painful. It's not _supposed_ to be easy. But he would have killed you, I’m sure of it. And Ben… Maybe you weren't careful enough, but he was already looking into Fisk. And Fisk would have made the connection. He was off the rails toward the end."

"Nothing will ever make me feel good about this."

"You wouldn't be you if you didn't care about people, Karen. You never deserved any of this." He said, petting her head. "And if you honestly think that I don't deserve you, you are completely and utterly wrong. I'm so sorry you have been dealing with this on your own."

He kissed her again as she cried against him, completely surprised by his response. He was the vigilante with a code. He was the Catholic who couldn't bring himself to kill cold blooded killers. And he didn't think twice about her after she told him the worst thing she’d ever done.

"Karen, maybe you should talk to someone. You've gone through a lot in the last year."

"Maybe."

"It's what I do when I'm struggling with the weight of what I do."

She nodded, imagining him admitting that he beat the shit out of people. She chuckled at the thought.

"You imagining Daredevil laying on a couch?" He chuckled.

"Are you sure you can't read minds?"

"It is a funny image. Now change it to a confessional."

That really had her laughing. And he was happy to see that she was starting to feel better.

"I'm glad you are amused," he said kissing her nose. "I am here for you. And it may be good for you to tell Foggy. He loves you, Karen. I don’t think anything could change our opinion of you. It is heartbreaking to think that you have had to keep this from us."

She finished the rest of her glass of whiskey. "I didn't want to make either of you an accessory."

"Talk to him as your lawyer. _We're_ a little past that since we are dating. I guess we'll probably just have to get married to make sure our bases are covered."

She spit out her drink and broke into a coughing fit.

" _Damn_ , Karen. That was not the response I expected from a proposal. I don’t know how I'll ever recover from this level of rejection."

She saw the smile across his face and shook her head at him. "You really love to mess with me, don't you Matt Murdock?"

"I do indeed." He laughed. "Everything will be fine. I'm sure Fisk took care of the cleanup. No one is going to find out. And since he's in prison, I don't think he'll be able to figure out that you were connected in any way."

He got up and walked to the entryway. "I grabbed your bag from your apartment," he said, bringing it into his bedroom. She followed him and unzipped it as he grabbed some clothes for himself from his dresser and sat them on the edge of the bed. As she grabbed her pajamas out of the bag, a different kind of sadness swept over her.

"Matt, I just realized we didn't have our date."

"I know. But we'll find another day." He said. "I was thinking about ordering food. Are you hungry?"

"Starving. I think I'm going to take a shower, if you don't mind." She didn't know if it was just her imagination, but she couldn't get the smell of gas out of her nostrils and it made her feel dirty.

"Make yourself at home."

Karen took a shower and put on her pajamas. She left the bathroom and listened for him, but the apartment was quiet. Too quiet. Crippling fear spread through her as she searched his bedroom and found that he was gone. He walked inside a minute later with his cane and food in hand.

"Hey," he said, setting the food down in the entryway and rushing over to her. He felt like his heart was breaking and the only way to solve the problem was to hold her in his arms. "I'm right here.”

"I'm fine. I'm fine." She pulled away from him and walked over to the food, grabbing it and heading to the table. "I hate that I'm responding this way. Please just forget it."

She grabbed plates and silverware from the kitchen and he said nothing more on the matter. He could tell she was ready to break at any moment and she just wanted to get back to normal. The knock at Matt's door a moment later was very poorly timed, but Karen calmed down once she saw it was Foggy. He immediately lightened the mood. The boys had beers while Karen pushed the food around her plate and sobered up. By the time he left, Karen was feeling much better. Until she imagined sleeping alone.

Matt read her mind. He didn't even attempt to go to the couch. She had been keeping him close all night and he wasn't about to make her ask. After he brushed his teeth, she headed into the bathroom and did the same. She found him under the covers, his arm extended as she slipped in.

"Thank you, she said as he lowered the blanket and wrapped his arm around her.  
He kissed her nose. "You don't need to thank me for anything. I'm the one who gets to sleep with you in my arms."

She kissed him once more, trying to mask her feelings as much as possible. Because they may have only been dating for three days, but she was falling in love with him.

 


	5. One Perfect Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt decides to cheer Karen up by taking her on an adventure in the city.

Matt let Karen sleep in.

He had already re-scheduled his meetings, and Foggy was following up with the police to see if they had any leads. Matt was planning on searching for Richard tonight, but his priority was keeping Karen safe. Being close to her seemed like the best option.

He slipped back into bed after making his calls and fell back asleep.  

Karen woke up in his arms, laying on her back. His hand was under her shirt, his fingers spread over her ribs and part of her stomach. With every breath she took, she was reminded of how close he was to her,

She looked up at him and saw his eyes blink open. 

Matt smiled at first, until he realized what he had inadvertently done, and quickly pulled his hand away, moving it to the outside of her shirt. She knew he'd know how much she wanted him, and she used every bit of strength to keep herself from coming on to him. 

"Morning handsome." She said, smiling as he kissed her. 

"Morning. You sleep well?" He knew the answer already. She hardly moved last night, finally getting the rest she needed. 

"Yeah. I did." She didn't point out that she knew why. They were in an unconventional situation and she didn't want to make it any weirder. They had been friends for almost a year, but going from friends to dating to living with each other was not something either of them had experienced. Even if it was only for a little while. 

"Wait! What time is it?"

"10:30."

"What? We need to go to work!"

He looked perfectly calm. "I think we should take the day off."

"Matt, there's too much to do. I'll be fine. Really."

"Karen, you haven't taken a day off in months. And you work most weekends. I think it would be a nice break from the stress."

"Seriously?"

"I was thinking we could go on our second date, but if you _really_ want to go to work…"

She kissed him and he pulled her closer. "Alright, Murdock. You're the boss."

"I'm pretty sure it's the other way around most of the time, but I'll take it." He played with her hair and kissed her forehead. "So, what haven't you had a chance to do in New York since you got here?"

Karen thought for a moment and shook her head. "I'm going to sound like a total nerd."

"Let's hear it."

"I've always wanted to go to the New York Public Library. I know it's pretty touristy, but I haven't had a lot of time to explore the city."

Matt smiled. "That sounds perfect."

"Really?" 

"Of course, Karen. My dad used to take me there when I was a kid. It's a really beautiful building. I read a lot when I was younger, partially because I liked it and partially because he wanted me to take a different path than the one he did. After my accident, I'd go to the Braille library on West 20th Street, but I came back here every now and then because I loved the smell of the books. There aren’t a lot of 100-year-old Braille books in New York.”

Matt called Foggy and asked for an update while Karen was getting ready. She could tell by his hushed tone that there was no good news.

They took their time. Matt grilled some sandwiches for them before they left. Karen realized that everything felt like it was back to normal, and she was grateful for that. Matt tried to hide his worried glance as she wrapped her sandwich and put the second half of it in the fridge. She didn’t know why, but she still didn't have much of an appetite.

It was a beautiful day, so they walked the mile to the library. Matt brought her to the main entrance, and she tried to take everything in; from the marble columns to the two enormous statues of lions that adorned the steps. The buildings in New York never failed to amaze her. She clutched Matt’s hand in excitement as they walked through the large doors.

Apart from a group of 20 people listening to a tour guide on headsets, everyone around them shuffled around the main floor like they knew where they were going. She felt slightly out of place, but in a good way.

“Do you remember a lot about this place? I don’t even know where to begin.”

He smiled at her. “Well, I was young, so the place I know best is the children's center.”

She lit up. “I think that’s a _great_ place to start.”

He walked her in the right direction and they found dozens of children sitting on the floor listening to a man reading a story. She tilted her head and beamed as she heard the words.

“Winnie the Pooh?.” He said as she looked at him.

“Yeah.” She already had tears in her eyes as she listened to the words. “It was my favorite when I was a kid,” she whispered.

Karen pursed her lips in a smile as the kids giggled, leaning her head against Matt’s shoulder. Matt couldn’t focus on the story while he was with her. Her joy was palpable while she listened, and he was enraptured by her.

“I think I know something you’ll really like,” he said as the man finished the story. She grabbed his hand again and he walked her to a small corner that had images of the hundred-acre-wood and its characters painted on the walls. A group of children surrounded the glass case in the center, so she walked over to the map and read the locations off to him as he dragged his fingers over the wall. As the kids left, they turned around and looked at the glass case that housed the original Winnie-the-Pooh.

Matt’s radar sense was ineffective when it came to sensing the shapes inside the glass, but Karen told him the contents and an image came into his mind from when he was a kid. The room filled with even more kids than before.

“I don’t know how we can top that,” she said as they exited. They took the stairs to the first level and walked from room to room. Karen was overwhelmed by the artwork and thousands of books that lined the shelves. Matt breathed everything in. One of his favorite things to smell was old books. It was always a welcome scent.  

Each room was different, and Karen couldn’t believe how beautiful the hundred-year-old building was. They walked into an area that housed classic fiction, and Karen searched through the shelves.

“What are you looking for?” Matt asked.

“It’s right… here.” She searched through the “L’s” and handed him a well-worn book. He ran his hand over the cover and flipped it open, finding the title page and smiling.

“ _To Kill a Mockingbird_?”

“It’s my favorite book.”

“I think you are the perfect woman for me, Karen Page.” he said with a kiss.

“You mean you can relate to a lawyer who fights for the rights of the innocent?” she said smiling. It made perfect sense. If _anyone_ wanted to be like Atticus Finch, it was Matt Murdock.

“He’s a hard character to live up to.”

“I think you’re doing just fine,” she said, taking the book from his hands and putting it back in its place.

“You’re not going to check it out?”

“I don’t have a library card. Do you?”

“I do. But I think it’s time for you to get your own. You _are_ a New Yorker after all.” She pulled it back out. “You were really going to spend hours in this place and not check out a book?”

She beamed at him. “I don’t know,” she laughed. “I guess so.”

She carried her book in one hand and held his hand with the other as they found another room that was unlike the others. They stood outside of a wooden door that had rivets and a window shaped like a porthole.

“I feel like we’re about to step onto the Titanic.” She said as she ran his fingers over it.

He offered his bent arm. “Ms. Page,” she chuckled as she took it, thinking that apparently, she’d willingly walk onto the Titanic with Matt Murdock if he asked her to. She dropped his arm once they made it to a narrow walkway and turned into one of the gold stacks. Matt felt along the shelves as Karen disappeared around the other side. When he was done exploring his aisle, he turned the corner and she pulled him into a surprise kiss. He couldn’t wipe the smile from his face.

They heard someone turning the corner to their aisle, and quickly moved two more aisles up, like being caught would have consequences. Once they were blocked by another shelf, they kissed once more. Karen giggled and covered her mouth as someone walking down the alley shushed her.

Matt heard another person walking toward them and pulled away from her, acting like he was looking at a book while she stood stunned.

“Can I help you two?” A woman asked them, seeing his cane and his poor attempt at faking like he was looking for something.

“We’re fine, thank you,” he said, and Karen choked on her laughter. The librarian looked at her like she wasn’t mature enough to be in a quiet area and she snorted this time. The woman shook her head in disapproval and walked away.

She tried her best to laugh quietly as she wiped away tears. “Good cover there, Murdock.”

“Hey, it’s entirely possible that I only have partial vision.”

“Fair point.

“And it’s better than making her think you were _laughing_ at her.” He said in a tone of mock seriousness. “I’m so embarrassed right now.” He walked away like he didn’t know her and she burst into laughter, which caused a chain reaction of shushes. She shook her head and went across the aisle to more shelves, making it less easy for him to find her.

But the moment she made it a game, she should have known she’d lost. She walked all the way to the back corner and he found her immediately. She rounded the shelf, but he grabbed her arm and pulled her back to him, kissing her more fully this time. She felt her knees give way as she immersed herself in him. It felt like they were the only people in the world.

He smiled from ear to ear as he pulled away, and in that moment, she was realized she was putty in his hands. She drifted out of the room until he stopped at their final location, the Rose Reading Room. The enormous room had books lining the walls and was filled with desks. The sound of a hundred people flipping pages at different times was almost soothing to Matt, but Karen was staring at the ceiling in awe. It was unlike anything she had ever seen.  

Karen and Matt made their way back down the marble staircase and found a desk devoted to library accounts. Karen filled out her paperwork and they checked her out with her new library card.

“I can’t believe we just spent three hours walking around that place,” she said as she looked at the clock on her phone. It was already 4:00 PM. “That has been a really good day.”

“It's not over yet…”

“Really? You still want to hang out?”

“I’ve got all day. Where to next, Page?”

She was practically giddy. “What are your other favorite things to do in the city?”

"Hmm... Well, when I was a kid I used to go to this castle in Central Park.”

"I'm sorry, did you just say _castle_?"

"I did. My dad used to take me there. I know a good sushi place near there. What if we grabbed food and ate in the park? Then I'll take you to the castle."

“That sounds perfect.”

Matt and Karen boarded a packed subway and took it toward Central Park. They walked toward the back of the car and stood on the other side of the seats. Matt held onto the bar, his cane in his other hand. Karen looked for any space to grab hold and saw that everything was taken. Matt noticed and put his other hand on her waist, and she leaned against him to keep her balance as they moved.

They rode for several blocks, and Matt pulled Karen toward him and kissed her when the lights flickered off for a few seconds. It took the rest of the ride for her cheeks to return to their normal color. Once they got off the train, Karen held his hand and took looked at every townhouse and shop they passed. She glanced at a second-hand shop next door to the sushi restaurant, and Matt noticed her interest.

"Do you want to go inside while I grab our food?" Matt asked.

"Do you mind? You already know what I like…"

"Of course not. Take your time."

Karen walked into the shop and walked toward a large quilt that had caught her eye. It was only $7.00. She took it to the front and bought a large tote to carry it in, then waited for Matt outside of the restaurant.

He touched inside the bag, confirming what he thought she’d purchased. "Good idea, Karen."

They walked toward Belvedere Castle and found a spot in an open area. Karen unfolded the blanket and they sat down, spreading out their food and drinks. When they finished their food, Karen threw it away and came back to Matt laying back with his eyes closed.

She pulled out her book and lay back next to him, and he opened his arm so that she could rest against him. She read it aloud over the noise of children playing and people walking on a nearby trail. Matt couldn't think of a more perfect moment to spend on a date that he wasn't ready to end. Eventually they both fell asleep, Karen's book resting on Matt's stomach, her arm wrapped around his chest.

He woke up to a quieter scene. Dark clouds had rolled in, and the people had disappeared. He ran his hand along her face and she woke up, yawning and looking at their surroundings. She looked at the time and saw how late it was.

"Whoops. It's 8:30. I think the castle is probably closed by now."

"We can find out. If anything, you can see it up close from the outside. It's still pretty cool." It started to rain as they walked up a trail. Karen saw the castle from above them as they ascended the walkway. "Wow," she said in awe. But the moment the word left her lips, the rain started pouring from the sky.

"Should we head back?"

"If I remember right, there's a covered area. We may need to wait it out for a minute." 

They ran up the steps to the top and went under the covered area. Karen laughed as she pulled her dress off of her skin, and it stuck to her. Matt stepped toward her to kiss her and she had to catch her breath once he pulled away. He turned toward the building and pointed to a man who was closing the door to the castle. 

"Excuse me," she said as he passed the small covering they were standing under. "Is the castle closed?" 

He looked up at the two drenched people, each with a look of hope on their faces.

"Yeah, we actually closed at 5:00, but I was doing inventory in the shop."

"Oh." Karen nodded sadly. "We were _way_ off."

"It's ok, Karen. I'll bring you back another day." Matt said. 

She smiled at him and the man could see how disappointed Matt was that she couldn't go in. 

"Never been here before?"

"I had before I lost my sight. Karen hasn't been a New Yorker for long, so this is her first time."

“Well I can’t let you down the first time you come here,” he said genuinely. "Listen, I'm not supposed to do this, but if you two really want to check the castle out, I can let you in. The shop is locked up, but the castle is still accessible."

"Really?" Karen asked with an enormous smile on her face.

"Of course. Just make sure to lock the door before you leave. And don't leave any sign that you were here."

"We will! I'd hug you right now, but I'm drenched." Karen laughed.

"Have fun." he said, letting them inside. 

They walked through the brick entryway and headed to the twisted steps. Matt folded his cane and Karen took it and put it inside her bag. They climbed toward to the very top and stepped outside. Karen looked out over the park, seeing the theater and the pond, and smiled despite the fact that she was getting more drenched. She saw the rain bouncing on the water and met Matt under a wooden covering.

"This as fun as you remember?" She laughed. 

"It might be more fun," He smiled, and she had to look away to prevent herself from giggling.

"I can't believe that the ground isn't soaked over here." She said, setting her bag down and pulling the blanket out. She wrapped it around Matt and stood in front of him, allowing him to enclose her in it. He smelled her hair as she looked out over the park. 

"Wow, this is beautiful." She gazed at the lights from the buildings that surrounded them. "I wish you could see this."

"I'm pretty content right now." He said. She smiled, turning around to kiss him. 

As he pulled away, she thought about how lucky she was to be with him. "Thank you for today, Matt. This is the best date I've ever been on." 

"I'm glad. I haven't been able to experience the city like this in a long time. Maybe not ever…"

She hugged him and looked over his shoulder as the rain ricocheted off the bricks. "The rain doesn’t seem to be letting up." She said shivering and he pulled her close to him. She tilted her forehead against his and closed her eyes, getting more serious as she felt his hands on her. "I guess we'll need to wait a little longer." Their lips were just inches apart. 

"Good." He ran his hands over her back to her waist. He kissed her for longer this time, allowing himself to explore her as his hands drifted over her wet dress. She had her hands on his hips and slipped them under his t-shirt. The blanket fell to the ground as she lifted it off and ran her fingers over his wet abs, biting her lip as she moved around to his back, pressing her fingers into his skin

Matt lifted her chin and opened his mouth, grazing her lips with his. She could feel his breath on her lips as he ran his hand down from her chin to her cleavage. She let out a small moan, noticing that her nipples were starting to hurt from a mixture of cold and longing to be touched. He continued down her dress, lifting it slowly over her body and dropping it to the ground.

She was half-naked in a public place and made her want him even more. She quickly unbuckled his belt and unbuttoned his jeans, and he grabbed his wallet as he slipped out of them. He removed a condom from inside, slipping it into the waistband of his boxers and she shivered as she realized that this was in fact happening. He pulled her toward him and he ran his hands over her skin slowly, like he needed to know every curve and freckle. She couldn't imagine living in another moment where he wasn't touching her with those hands, as he filled in the gaps of a partially formed image of her that he’d been carrying with him since the day he’d met her.

She felt her knees weaken and he pulled away from her, grabbing the blanket and wrapping it around him so that he didn’t feel any of the brick as he sat down, leaning against the wall. He gestured for her to walk over to him and she stood above him as he ran his hands down her stomach to her underwear, pulling her closer. He kissed her panty line, continuing down the outside of her underwear, and she could feel his hot breath on her most intimate parts. He pulled her underwear down and helped her out of them, and she lowered herself over him so that she was straddling him over his underwear. She could feel his hardness beneath her and kissed his neck to his earlobe, tasting him with her tongue.

Matt crumpled the bottom of the blanket so that her knees weren't hurting against the bricks, and she was thankful yet again for his awareness. He wrapped it around her back and found her bra clasp, slowly unlatching it as he kissed her neck and collar bone. He freed her from her bra and dropped it inside of the blanket. Karen grabbed his hands and ran them from her shoulders to her breasts, her breath shallow as he explored them with the pads of his fingers. He kissed each breast and ran his other hand down her stomach to her clit, massaging her as she moved her body over him. She gasped as he inserted his fingers inside of her, feeling how incredibly wet she was. She kissed him as he brought her closer and closer to orgasm, and she wanted nothing more than to have him inside of her.

"Matt, I can't wait any longer," she whispered into his ear. She lifted herself slightly and he quickly pulled his boxers down, grabbing the condom before it fell to the ground. She took his cock into her hand and explored it as he fumbled to open the package, and groaned, forgetting the task at hand. She took over and grabbed it from him, rolling it over him. She shuddered as she realized what they were about to do, and he took a minute to kiss her as he took himself into his hand and guided the tip underneath her. She lowered herself slowly onto him, small breaths escaping her as he made his way inside of her.

He tilted his head back and groaned as she lowered herself completely onto him. Karen wrapped her arms around his neck, her hands running through his hair and over his chin. She lifted slowly and continued the same motion as he dragged his hands over her back and kissed her. She increased her pace, digging her nails into his back as she came, her body suddenly remembering that she had been on the verge only minutes before. He kissed her slowly as he continued to thrust inside of her, his breathing becoming more intense with each motion. 

She took over the work, grinding down on him and rolling her hips. "Oh my God," he said breathily, and she increased her pace, feeling herself begin to lose it. He could tell that she was close again and did his best to hold back, knowing that he had been seconds away. He dragged his hands over her and massaged her nipples. She started to shake this time, losing her breath as she felt him throbbing inside of her, and he thrust one final time reaching their peak in unison. 

Karen kissed his cheeks and dragged her lips over them as she tried to breathe normally again. She rested her head on his shoulder and he kissed her forehead as he lifted her, shifting the blanket so that they could lay down. She rested her head against him, her hair falling over his shoulder and he ran his hand over her face, knowing there was no one else in the world that he wanted to be with more than her.

 


	6. A Semblance of Normal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Karen finally feels better about her situation and decides it’s time to go back to her apartment, despite Matt and Foggy’s fears. She takes matters into her own hands and researches the man who made an attempt on her life in order to bring him to justice.

Even while she was sleeping, Karen’s lips welcomed his.

It was a wonderful way to wake up. And that was good, considering she was freezing in the early hours of the morning as the rain continued to drizzle. They silently slipped into their frozen clothing, and Matt wrapped Karen in the blanket. They gathered every sign that they had been there, and left the castle as the sun started to come up.

Karen found a car nearby on an app on her phone and they rode to his apartment, dozing off again until the car jerked to a stop. They thanked the driver and headed up to his apartment, barely awake. Karen couldn’t stop her shivering as they made it into the warmth, so Matt led her into the shower so that they could warm up and they fell into bed, too tired to get dressed.

Karen woke up a few hours later, surprised that her exhaustion still allowed her to wake up at her normal time of 7:00 AM, and grateful that she'd be able to make it into work on time for once. They were in the same position they had fallen asleep in, unclothed and in each other's arms. She could feel the sweat marks on the places their bodies met and smiled as she felt his breath against her neck.

She slipped out of bed and found a robe on a chair in his room. As she walked out to the living room, she couldn't help but notice how different she felt. This seemed… real. She had never felt this way before with anyone, but she was overcome with a feeling that she had never experienced. That he was hers. She couldn't stop smiling as she walked to the fridge, and pulled out the contents for an omelet.

Karen cooked in a haze, seeing him sleeping soundly and hating the distance between them. She couldn’t believe that she had spent an entire day without worrying about the fact that her life had been threatened. And she had a hard time remembering it even now. All the could think about was how happy she was just a few hours ago.

Yesterday had been… perfect. She plated their food, and put two slices of toast in the toaster. She crooked her head as she went to wake him up. He was facing her now, a small smile on his face as he dreamed. It was rare that she got to see the pure relaxed side of Daredevil. He wasn't worried about her safety or plotting his next steps to neutralize the threat. She loved living in a perfect world where he was happy in his unconsciousness.

Karen leaned over Matt and ran her fingers up his cheek and through his messy hair. He reached up and grabbed her hand, his fingers weaving over hers, his eyes still closed. He pulled her down on top of him and kissed her, rolling them over and opening his eyes as he looked down at her face.

"Can I please wake up like this every day?" He said dreamily. His goofy smile made her forget to breathe.

"Hi."

"Good morning, beautiful." He said as she stifled a giggle. "Do I smell breakfast?"

"I like how you still ask me when you could actually go as far as to tell me if I over-salted your omelet"

He chuckled and wiggled his nose. "It smells perfect. The toast, however… is burned."

Even telling her she burned toast made her smile. She couldn't help but think, _you're pathetic, Page,_ as she turned to go back to the kitchen. She took a moment to watch him slip out of bed first, staring at his perfect ass in all its naked glory. He grabbed a pair of boxers and put them on she walked back into the kitchen to start more toast.  

Matt surprised her when he slipped his arms around her waist as she stirred the cream in each of their coffees. They carried their breakfast to the table and ate quietly, and Matt smiled at her in between bites. She hated to break the happy spell, but her heart told him she was about to say something serious.

He tilted her head, letting her know he sensed a change and she nodded like he had told her to go on.

"As much as I hate to say it, I think we should get back into our routine, Matt."

"I know. We'll be a few minutes late to work, but Foggy won't care. My first meeting is at 10:00 AM anyway…"

"That sounds good... But I also think I should move back into my apartment."

Matt sat his roast back down on his plate. "Really? Is this because I said that I wanted to wake up like that every day?" He said, anxiously. "Because I had just woken up. Honestly, if you tell me we should just be friends, I'd be fine…"

She smiled. "You'd be fine with that, huh?"

He nodded quickly. "Well, _yeah..._ I mean, as long as we could still go on dates, and you kept kissing me... And we could _occasionally_ do what we did last night… All important aspects of a friendship…"

"That's an interesting arrangement,” she said, kissing him. “Maybe we should go to _that_ instead of whatever this is, then."

"Anything you say, Page. The point is, I'm not attached _at all_." He rubbed her hand between his fingers and smiled from ear to ear.

She looked away, knowing her sentences would become unintelligible if she kept staring at him. "Well, back to what I was saying…" She took a breath. "This has been wonderful, but… You're going to get sick of me, fast. Most people don't move in right when they start dating…"

"Karen Page, I couldn't get sick of you if I tried." He kissed her nose and she sank into her chair. "But I'm still worried that he's going to come back. We haven't gotten any new information on his whereabouts."

"I have to be able to live my life, Matt. One of the officers told me that I can have a police unit watch my apartment, and I'm going to take him up on that. I'm also going to reinforce the locks on my door today, and I'll lock all of the windows. He won't get inside."

"Ok, Karen, it's completely up to you. I'll actually go out tonight to see if I can find him. I've been a little… distracted lately."

"This doesn't have to be your problem, Matt. He's probably lost interest. He achieved his goal of scaring me, but since we barely knew each other... maybe he's done." She said, trying to pass off her hope confidently. She knew that probably wasn’t the case, but the likelihood of him getting to her the same way was pretty slim if she had police guarding her.

"I hope you're right. But there is no chance I'm letting him come near you again."

She nodded, getting up and setting her empty plate on his. As she reached to pick it up, he pulled her onto his lap, kissing her. He slipped his hand inside of her robe, grazing her stomach and finding her side. She melted into him and he picked her up, carrying her back to the bedroom, their dirty plates forgotten on the table

*****

Matt was right about them being late. After a slight detour, they quickly got ready and rushed out the door.

"Hello, people who used to work here," Foggy said, noticing that they both had red cheeks and a glow about them. "What were you guys _doing_ to make you so late?"

Matt got fidgety trying to figure out what to tell him. Karen laughed as she watched the supposed lawyer try to lie to his best friend. "Let's just say you'd be proud, Foggy. I'll leave it at that."

His mouth dropped open as he raised his hand into a high five. She proudly slapped his hand and walked to the kitchen, saying no more on the matter.

"No _way_ , Murdock."

"Foggy, don't make a big deal… We're going to scare her away."

"Yeah, right. For some reason, she's always fallen for that geeky Murdock charm. Don't screw it up. She's too good for anyone, Matt."

"Don't remind her." He said, hearing her re-enter the room with three coffees.

"Get to work, boys! Someone thought it would be a good idea to take a day off and now we are super behind. She handed the cup to Foggy and kissed his cheek, then one to Matt, and she kissed him on the lips. This time she took _his_ breath away. She turned away like nothing had happened and went to her computer as both men watched her walk away.

\----------------------

The office was back to its usual buzz. Foggy and Matt had pushed enough appointments over the course of the week that they had back to back clients all day. Karen caught up on some paperwork and compiled a list of architecture firms in Manhattan. She had met Richard at a restaurant nearby, but he had told her that he was meeting a client pretty far from his office.

Karen found that Manhattan had over one hundred architecture firms. She searched company directories and called several offices that didn’t offer that information online. So far she had found four companies that had architects named Richard. And she was only a quarter of the way through the list.

She decided to take a break after the guilt took hold. She realized that she didn't know Richard at all after three dates, and she couldn’t help but blame herself. They had always met near her, and she hadn't been to his apartment, so she didn’t know where he lived. Their conversations covered a variety of topics, but she hadn’t noticed how superficial his answers had been until now.

Karen started a new pot of coffee as Matt finished a meeting with his fourth client of the day. She turned around to go to the fridge and he was there, holding out the cream. She smiled at him and jumped into his arms, kissing him like she hadn't seen him in a week. He let their moment play out, knowing no one was near them, and pulling away as Foggy's office door opened.

"Working hard, Ms. Page?" He said in the most professional voice he could muster.

"It's hard when I can't stop staring at the handsome man in the office next to me."

"Karen, you shouldn't say things like that," Foggy interjected as he walked into the kitchen. "Matt clearly has feelings for you, and telling him you've been staring at me all day is pretty insensitive."

They both laughed and Karen threw her arms around Foggy's shoulders. "I can't help myself, _Foggy_. He's just going to have to _deal_ with it."

“This took a terrible turn," Matt said, faking concern.

Karen removed her arms from Foggy's neck, laughing. "The schedule is still pretty packed, boys. I was planning on running out to get some lunch. Any preferences?"

"I can go grab food, Karen," Foggy said quickly. He couldn’t hide his concern.

"Foggy, it's _fine_. I have to be able to go outside. I'm going to go crazy if you guys keep worrying about me like this."

"Maybe I should cancel some meetings,” Matt said. “I haven't even scratched the surface in the search for him."

"I'm on it, Matt." She said, smiling. "I've already found four Richards at architecture firms in the area. One of them definitely wasn't him, but I couldn't get through to the other three. I'll call again and continue working through the list so you'll have something to search for tonight."

Foggy looked worried. "We can pick up the pace, Karen. No one wants you to have to go through that…"

"It's fine, you guys. I'm doing much better now. And the sooner we find him, the sooner we can get back to normal."

They reluctantly agreed with her and she left to get food. The moment the door closed, Foggy followed Matt into his office.

"I don't like this. Not one bit."

"I know, Foggy, but Karen has been this tough since we met her. She wants to figure this out as much as we do. She is going back to her apartment tonight-"

" _What_! Why would she do that?"

"Calm down, Foggy. She called the police this morning and they are going to watch her apartment tonight."

"Fine. But I don't like any of this. I don’t know how you are so calm."

"Believe me, I am not happy about it. But I'm not going to make her feel like a prisoner. She is taking every step to protect herself. And I don't want to be the over-protective guy she’s dating. It’s going to come off as controlling, and that's the last thing she needs right now."

"Are you going out tonight?"

"I am. I'm going to find him and make sure the police actually _arrest_ him this time."

They went back to work and Karen came back with food and a bag from a hardware store. Foggy was meeting with another client and she sat his food on the table outside of his office. Matt gestured to a chair he had moved next to his desk and they ate side by side, their knees touching. Matt was trying his best to give her space, but he only lasted a minute. She looked down and found her fingers weaved between his. She took a bite of his sweet and sour chicken with her left hand like nothing had happened.

The day went by quickly. Karen found several more Richards on the list after getting a third of the way through. She left the list on her desk and grabbed the information for the five that she thought were the most likely possibilities. Matt finished up with a client and she entered his office. He loosened his tie and sighed in relief. His head found her stomach as she stood in front of him, her fingers instantly in his hair, massaging his scalp. He quietly moaned, wrapping his arms around the back of her legs and wanting more. Thankfully she had a sense of where she was and pulled away.

"How far through the list did you get?" He asked her.

"About a third of the way. It's on my desk with notes. I have the most likely candidates so far right here," she said handing it to him. "I printed it out so you could feel the raised ink. I still can't believe you can do that."

He ran his fingers over the ink. "This is perfect. I'll go by the offices tonight and see if I can figure out if he's been near. It’s not a perfect plan, but I’ve found people that way before, and it’s all we have to go on."

"I really hope you aren't about to go on a wild goose chase here."

"We'll see how it goes. It's worth a shot."

Karen nodded. "A squad car is coming by to pick me up in five minutes. Is there anything else I can do for you?"

He took her into his arms and kissed her, rubbing the small of her back and up her waist.

"I _meant_ something that wouldn't take too long, Murdock," she said, kissing him once more.

"You're the boss, Page." he said, lifting his hands up and backing away in defeat.

She picked up her purse and turned to leave, pausing and turning back around again. "Be careful, Matt... I couldn't handle it if something happened to you."

"Likewise." He stood up and hugged her one last time. "I'll find him. I promise."

"I know. Goodnight handsome."

She grabbed headed out, saying goodbye to Foggy as she left. The police car was waiting for her in front of the building, and an officer opened the door for her and she climbed inside. She didn't know how, but she knew he was listening to make sure she was safe. Karen smiled as she looked out the back window and watched the building get smaller as they drove away.


	7. Her Dress Brings Out the Color of Her Eyes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt attempts to find Richard as Daredevil and is reminded of his limitations. Karen's worst fear is realized when Richard finds her again and threatens the people she loves.

Matt didn't know what he was thinking.

He just ran something like 10 miles round trip and came back with nothing. It didn’t happen often when he was on the prowl, but occasionally he found himself at odds with his vigilante self. He had yet to find a balance between his alter-ego making things easier vs. him making them harder. Daredevil couldn’t just hop in a cab when he had to go outside of Hell’s Kitchen. He tried that once before in a moment of desperation and regretted it instantly. The driver had bombarded with questions and taken to the wrong damn location because he was distracted. And that was someone who had positive feelings toward vigilantes.

Matt had overheard random citizens of Hell's Kitchen discussing Daredevil’s failure to save people before. Someone would meet a violent end in a few blocks away from Hell's Kitchen and he’d hear comments like, “if only Daredevil had been there,” or, “he must have been doing something else instead of saving someone who needed him.” He knew the comments were ridiculous, and he tried to ignore them because Matt Murdock was already his own harshest critic. Even he had accepted that he just couldn’t be everywhere at once.

People thought that superheroes were invincible people with unlimited resources. And he laughed the term off when it was connected to his alter-ego because it just sounded ridiculous. But as people started to accept his role in their city and grew to respect him, he heard the word more and more. The simple truth was that he was just a man. That’s why the general area he tried to protect was just 10 blocks. It was his home. And it was feasible.

He hopped in the shower and thought about how right Karen had been. Then he thanked God for the fact that she had been sensible enough to search for firms by location, or he'd be even more dead on his feet. Tomorrow would be different. Tomorrow he'd wear his street clothes and get around the old-fashioned way. Train or cab, it didn't matter. He needed to find Richard fast, and unfortunately Daredevil wasn’t cutting it.

He finished his shower and walked into his bedroom, exhausted. He didn’t want to know what time it was, but it had to be late. He put some boxers on and crawled into bed, grateful for the soft feeling of his sheets against his skin. He was quickly reminded that she wasn’t here, even though her smell was trapped within under his blankets. Her soft skin had touched them less than 12 hours before. He tried not to think about her legs wrapped around him, her soft lips against his neck as he made her whimper and moan.

He picked up his phone and automatically called her. She answered on the third ring.

"Matt?" She said groggily.

"Hey Karen,” he instantly went back to his more sensible and guilty self. “I'm so sorry for waking you up."

"It's fine. Are you ok?" He knew that she had jumped right to an image of a bleeding Daredevil in his living room, and felt even worse that she was worried about him yet again.

"Nothing is wrong." He said, reassuringly. "I just wanted to hear your voice."

She yawned and he heard her roll over. He imagined them in the same bed together, instead of eight blocks away. "Well then, thanks for the late call.”

"I'll let you get back to sleep."

"No chance, Murdock. You woke me up. If you hang up, I'm just going to lay here thinking of you… And then I _really_ won't be able to go to sleep." Her voice sounded hungry, and it was enough to send him through the roof.

"What are you trying to do to me, Page?" he said, not even recognizing his husky voice as the words left his mouth.

She had him, and he knew she knew it. "I don't know, Matt. What do you _want_ me to do to you?" She giggled as he groaned in frustration, moving his hands below the sheets and quickly back above them.

"Remind me why you had to stay _there_ tonight? And why I can't come over right now?"

"I think it was because you'd get sick of me..."

The fact that she could believe that, even for a minute, destroyed him. "Your point is less and less valid with time, Karen. And I could be over there in 15 minutes if I run _really_ fast."

"…And because it would probably be good for both of us to get some sleep for once."

"If it were up to me, I would never choose sleep over being with you." He couldn’t help but be honest with her. She was impressed with his ability to read people, but she was always able to delve past the layer of him that kept people at a distance. She knew him at his core.

He could tell her resolve was weakening, but it wasn’t enough. _Why couldn’t it be enough?_   "I know, Matt. That's why I'm making the late night decisions in this relationship. I'm trying to help you be a better lawyer. I’m guessing our clients wouldn’t appreciate it if you fell asleep in meetings with them."

She said the words he longed to hear. And he used them to his advantage in order to ask her a question he'd been keeping to himself for days. "Relationship? Does that make you my _girlfriend_ , Karen Page?"

She smiled, her eyes watering slightly. "You sure you don't want to keep your options open?"

"Ha ha." he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"I don't know how the world will feel about me taking the most eligible lawyer off the market." She chuckled.

He scoffed. "I think they'll people would agree that we both work really hard and we deserve it."

"You have to have noticed that nearly every woman who meets you is interested. There’s practically a line out of the office."

"I haven't noticed a line of women..."

"That's because you're blind, Murdock. Believe me, it is very obvious..."

"Well, they're going to have to move on to the next eligible bachelor if that's alright with you."

”Then I guess we're exclusive," she smiled. “It only took a week."

"See? I knew there was a reason I called."

"Go to bed, Murdock. I'll give you a kiss when you show up to work on time."

"There is no better incentive. Good night, Karen."

"Good night."

**********  
  
Karen was looking forward to work. She got dressed quickly and knocked on the window of the police car once she was outside.

“Morning, Ms. Page.”

“Morning, Officer Walker, Officer Evans.” Officer Evans gave her a small wave as he spoke into his radio.

“I’m sorry you guys had to sit out here all night. Can I thank you with coffee?” She said as she pointed to a cart on the corner.

"You have nothing to be sorry for, Ms. Page. And I appreciate the offer, but the moment I'm off, I’ll be going to bed.”

Evans touched Walker’s shoulder and he turned to find out what was going on.

“They’re evacuating a school a few blocks from here because of a bomb threat. They want anyone in the area to head over now.”

“Ok. Ms. Page, let’s get you to work.”

“Don’t worry about me, Officer Walker. I’m only going a few blocks. Thank you so much.”

Officer Evans responded to the call and they drove away quickly. Karen walked a block toward work and as she was about to cross the street, she saw him. 

Richard stood on the corner she was headed to and gestured for her to come to him with two fingers, an evil smile on his face.

She looked behind her to see if the police car was still in range and sighed angrily. She walked through the crowd and stood two feet from him.

“Hello Karen,” He said happily, and she felt the urge to vomit.

"People are looking for you, Richard. Or whatever your real name is…"

"Maybe you should go run to Daredevil"

"As much as I'd love to see him kick your ass again…" She saw him wince, "I don't have his number."

He leaned forward and whispered in her ear as she cringed at his proximity to her. "Oh, but I think you _do_."

"You're really funny, Richard." She said with a confused look on her face. "But I don't think he gives out his phone number to the people he saves from violent assholes…"

He didn't even flinch. "How about you come to breakfast with me and I'll tell you all about how I know your boyfriend is Daredevil." Another group of people crossed the street, enveloping them as she stood there silently. "Maybe you can fill me in on how it's even physically possible."

"I'm not going anywhere with you, Richard."

"That's fine, Karen. I'm sure his enemies would love to know his real identity. I can't quite explain it yet, but I'll find a way. I think I'll start with the man he threw in prison - Wilson Fisk. _Something_ tells me he'll have connections on the outside."

Tears filled her eyes at the thought of Fisk knowing anything about Matt. _She_ already didn’t feel safe when he was behind bars, but if he knew that Matt was responsible... He would definitely find a way to kill him if he knew his secret. She nodded and they walked to her diner.

Richard led Karen to a booth in the back and was grateful that he didn't notice as she went rigid when Linda waved at her. Karen shook her head quickly, trying to keep her away. Richard moved inside the booth and patted the seat. She reluctantly sat next to him trying to figure out her next steps.

"You sure did move on quickly, Karen… One might say you were quite a… hmm. What's the best word to use here."

"How about nothing?"

"You are really snippy for someone in your position."

"What do you want, Richard," she said, angrily. "I could tell you how wrong you are, but you seem to have your mind made up already."

Linda came up to them, treating them like they were ordinary customers. "Hi, guys. You ready to order?"

Richard was looking at his menu and Linda put her hand on her shoulder trying to get any information out of Karen. She smiled slightly, acting like everything was ok. It confused Linda even more.

"French toast, please." She figured she might as well have her favorite meal since it felt like it'd be her last. "And coffee."

Richard ordered pancakes and picked up where they left off as Linda left. 

"We both know I am not wrong. Your response earlier only validated my assumptions."

"Wilson Fisk is not a friend of my firm. We are the reason he's behind bars. Telling him that Matt is something he's not won't matter. He’d kill Matt and then come after me and Foggy just for knowing him. And I must say, killing the man who started dating the woman you dated for a few minutes seems pretty psychotic."

“I think I’ll sleep fine. And Fisk won’t get to you because _I’ll_ protect you, beautiful. Matt Murdock has been terrorizing this city for months and he should be put down.” She shuddered at the fact that he thought he’d protect her when he was the greatest threat to her well-being.

"Richard, he's blind. He can't fight people without sight. That makes no sense."

"That's the thing. I don't think he's really blind."

"You'll make up anything to make this stupid theory work."

He slammed his fist on the table and smiled sweetly until people looked away from them. "Karen, I punched Daredevil in the right side of the face. Then I saw you touch a large bruise on Matt's face in the same location. That is just too coincidental."

"You have no idea what you're talking about."

"Karen, I'm really sick of the lies. You dated me when you and your boss were clearly already screwing around. You are a good liar, and I'm angry that I didn't see it."

"So move on. I'm sure you could find someone better."

"You are special, Karen. I knew it the moment I saw you in that blue dress... the one that brought out the color of your eyes.” He smiled and looked off into the distance before coming back to her. “We had something, and whether you're willing to admit it or not, you'll remember your feelings for me. You just need time."

Karen had to steady her hands under the table. She wasn’t wearing a blue dress the first time she met him. She wasn’t even wearing a dress that day. She felt sick. Linda sat their plates down and Karen acted like things were ok again. "Thank you."

She barely ate. She was backed into a corner and she didn’t know what to do. "So what is your plan, then?"

"I think you should break up with your boyfriend."

"Of course you do."

"And I think you should come stay with me so that we can get to know each other. So that we can give this an actual chance."

"Richard, what you are talking about here is crazy. I'm not going to willingly be your girlfriend. I won't willingly… _Do_  anything else with you. Are you really ok with being that kind of person?"

"You really go to terrible places with that mind, Karen. I am offering you a chance to fix what we had. Nothing here is by force. You have the option to walk away right now."

"So what happens if you realize you don't actually like me? Or if I still don't want to be with you?"

"This will be a trial period. If we both agree that it isn't working, you can go back to your life and I'll go back to mine. I'm not a monster, Karen. I just don't like throwing something away because you couldn't keep it in your pants and needed a fling with your boss."

"And you won't tell this ridiculous theory to anyone? Even if it doesn't work out?"

"No, I won't. I can be reasonable, Karen.”

"Fine."

"Now text your bosses and tell them you aren't coming in."

She grabbed her phone out of her purse and pursed her lips. "Richard, they are going to figure it out."

He took it from her and wrote a believable lie, showing her after he hit “send.”

“Hey, guys, a friend from Vermont just showed up on my doorstep. Do you mind if I take the day off and spend it with her?"

Foggy responded first, telling her it was fine, followed with an inquiry about whether her friend would like to meet a handsome lawyer while she was in town.

Richard took her phone and texted him that she was married. Then her phone started buzzing. She reached out to take it, but Richard pulled it away. He looked down at the phone and tilted his head as he saw that it was Matt.

"I’m going to let you talk to him, but you have to act like everything is alright, Karen. Act happy." She nodded in agreement and he hit "accept" on the call and held the phone to her ear, leaning against her so that he could hear.

"Hey." she said, quickly, hoping he didn't notice something was wrong.

"Are you really going to back out of our agreement, _Page_? I am owed one kiss for showing up to my job on time!"

"I’m sorry, Matt," she said, and she could feel herself breaking.

He noticed that she wasn't in a playful mood. "I’m just kidding... Is everything ok?"

"Of course it is," she said with as much of a happy tone as she could muster. "Do you think you can handle it there without me?"

"That should be fine. Are you sure you're alright?"

"Quit worrying, Murdock. I don't want to blow off work, but I haven't seen Anna in a while and she is only here for the day."

He heard the clinking of silverware and the bustle of the people in the diner. "Are you sure it's not something else? Do you feel safe enough when he's still out there?"

Richard clutched his fist as he heard that.

"Of course, Matt. I'll be careful. I'm more worried about the amount of work you guys have today."

"I think a break would be good for you. We'll be fine. As long as you’re alright."

"I wouldn't lie to you." She said, as a tear fell down her face. "I just think you're right. Getting my mind off of things would be good."

"Ok. I'll call you tonight. Do you know how late you'll be?" He sounded normal again. 

"I think pretty late, so how about I call you when I get home?"

"That's fine, I…" He paused. "I miss you already, Karen."

"I miss you too.” She wiped the tears from the left side of her face, the rest making her phone wet against her face. “But we'll see each other soon. Make sure Foggy stays on top of his coffee. He gets bitchy otherwise."

"I will. Bye, beautiful."

"Bye."

******

Matt hung up the phone and rubbed his chin. Something didn't feel right. She was a little more enthusiastic than usual about her day off, which was very un-Karen. The woman found a way to feel guilty about the pile of work sitting on her desk when she was at home on a Sunday. Maybe she was trying to make her friend feel like it was ok. He went back to work going over the list that Karen had made. He crossed off all of the men he had looked into the night before and dialed the next number on the list.

******

Richard took Karen back to her apartment and waited for her to pack a bag. He watched her every move as she tried to think of a weapon or an S.O.S.-like device that could help her. Anything that could help her out of the situation she found herself in. But she had nothing of the sort. Her phone was her best lifeline and even if she got help, he would reveal Matt’s secret. She sniffled as she zipped up her bag and they left together.

Richard lived in an unfinished building downtown. There were several floors above and below them that were open to the world, still destroyed from the Battle of New York. "I got a really good deal on this place." He told her. His firm had done the redesign of the upper floors and they allowed him to buy two of the apartments.

He took her to a guest bedroom where she dropped off her bag. Then he took her on a tour of her new "home" as he called it, but she knew it was more like a prison. He showed her that he had access to the empty floor above them and told her of his plans for it.

"I'm going to add one more staircase over here and this will be the nursery and playroom for my future kids." she shuddered at the thought. "The guest room will be over here, and the home office will be right next door."

"That's a pretty big house," she said, looking over the city. If she took two more steps she'd be outside of the building. She imagined the happiness she'd feel from the few seconds of freedom before meeting her end.

"How is the building safe when there are so many floors below yours that aren't constructed?" She looked at a wire that hung from a crane above them, and the platform that was used to lower people to the next level.

"It's framed out, and the beams and floors have been replaced. It's mostly just missing windows, drywall, and insulation."

"Wow." She said still looking outside. "It's pretty scary up here."

"We're safe. But we can go downstairs if it makes you more comfortable."

"Thanks." She said.

When they got downstairs, he told her what she already knew was coming.

"You should break up with him tonight."

"I know. I'll call him later like I told him."

"I'm going to go into work for a half day. There is food in the fridge and I'll be back in a few hours." She nodded. "Karen, believe me when I say this. I really want this to work out. But if you pull anything stupid, like calling the police, no one will believe you. And then I will out your blind friend to the whole world."

"I know, Richard. I really don't know how you think this is going to end well."

"Karen, you were in a toxic relationship, you just didn't realize it. He's a vigilante and your boss. There is no way that could work out."

"Richard, there's this thing called _free will_. I could have figured that out for myself."

"I would really appreciate it if you spoke to me in a nicer tone, Karen.” He smiled sweetly and she felt her stomach churn. “You have your own room here, and we'll spend the next few days getting to know each other better. I could give you everything you’ve ever wanted, Karen. I can take care of you. I think you'll really be happy when you forget about Matt Murdock."

"Whatever you say, Richard," she said in a nicer tone.

"Give me your phone."

"If I don't respond, they'll sense something is up."

"Then I'll pay attention for you."

He took it from her hand and walked toward the door. "It would be in your best interest to stay here for the time being. I have security cameras set up and I will be checking them to make sure."

She glared as she stared out the window. "I'm not going anywhere, Richard."

"Good."

He left and she went to her bedroom and threw herself on the bed. She didn't have a plan, not really. He was going to watch her from his office. She couldn't leave for fear of him outing Daredevil. But how could she possibly convince him that they wouldn't work out? And would he really just part ways and keep Matt's secret? She knew that would come with strings as well. She knew she wasn't ever going to be able to see Matt Murdock again.

She curled into a ball and sobbed into a pillow.  
  
******

Matt made it through another third of the list and found six more possibilities. He had texted Karen twice throughout the day, but she gave him short responses. He assumed it was because she was having a good time with her friend. He looked at his watch and saw that it was 7:00 and prayed that today would be the day he’d find Richard.

He wasn't so lucky. He spent several hours traveling around the city and came up with nothing, feeling completely defeated. He felt the phone vibrate as he walked inside his apartment, answering quickly.

"Well if it isn't Karen Page," he said, a smile in his voice. 

"Hi Matt.”

He could sense the sadness in her voice. "Is everything alright, Karen?"

"Yeah. I had a good day today. I just… I was wondering if we could talk."

His heart sank and he sat on the couch. "Ok… About what?"

"I'm really sorry, Matt, but I don't think we should continue dating."

He was silent. This was the last thing he expected to hear from her.

She continued. "I… I think we jumped into this too fast and I've taken time to reflect on..." She held back a sob. "I just don't see this going anywhere. We are too different."

"Karen, where is this coming from? You were so happy yesterday."

"I wasn't thinking. I'm sorry Matt, but it just isn't going to work."

"Karen how about you come over... Or I can come over there."

"No."

He nodded his head in defeat. It took him a minute to pull himself together. "Is this really what you want?"

"Yes. I think I need to take some time from work. It'll be too hard to be around you."

"Karen, are you sure… Is anyone making you do this?"

She tried her hardest to tell the biggest lie she could. "No, Matt. Please don't go down that rabbit hole when all I'm trying to do is break up with you." She took another small breath. “I've already dated one obsessive person. Please don't make me go through that again."

He sniffled on the other line and her heart broke. She didn't want to hurt him. But she needed to do something to make him stay away from her. "I'm pretty sure that Richard is long gone and I would appreciate it if you gave up on that search. I'm going to go back to Vermont for a little while and there really is no point in wasting your energy."

"I disagree."

"Please just listen to me, Matt. The firm needs two lawyers. I am positive that I will be fine." She took a breath. "Please promise me that you'll leave him alone."

"Okay," he said reluctantly.

"I'm sorry about everything. If you need to find another secretary, I understand."

That hurt. "No, Karen. Take your time. There will always be a place for you at the office. I shouldn’t have... your job isn’t in jeopardy just because you went on a date with me."

"Thank you," She said, choking back tears. "I've… I've got to go. Please don't hate me for this…"

"I could never hate you, Karen. Let me know if there's anything I can do."

"There isn't. Goodbye Matt."

"Goodb-" She had already hung up. He went into his bedroom, and sat on the edge of the bed, laying back on the comforter.

She sobbed as Richard took her phone away. She went to the bedroom and sat on the edge, hyperventilating through tears. He let her have her moment, thinking that it would go away with time.

Matt didn't change out of his clothes, laying on his bed in shock. He could still smell her on his sheets. He looked over to her side of the bed and sighed, reaching his hand to the place where she belonged, and quickly pulled back.

He thought about what he could’ve done wrong. He was so sure that she was falling in love with him, but somehow he’d pushed her away and he hated himself for it. He knew it was crazy that he missed her from the next room over. So he tried to give her space and let her be the one to initiate the kisses and hand holding.

But it happened anyway. Despite the fact that his enhanced senses gave him deeper insight into her emotions. He had never felt anyone fall in love with him before, and that was why he knew this was different. Her heart had slowed like she was calmer around him, and her voice had a slightly higher pitch. He had thought it was narcissistic to find beauty in someone as he witnessed them falling for him, but he couldn’t help it. Every shiver at his touch, the way she licked her lips nervously before he leaned in to kiss her…

He didn't know how he was going to go to work and not feel her presence. How he was going to be able to forget about what they had. Because Matt Murdock realized right then that he was in love with her


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Karen investigates the man who blackmailed her while he's at work. Matt beats himself up over pushing Karen away, but luckily Foggy is there to tell him something isn't right.

Karen’s eyes blinked open violently.

She woke up at least five times throughout the night, never feeling safe enough to let her guard down despite the fact that her body wouldn’t cooperate. She had carefully placed her empty water glass on her doorknob so that she would know if Richard was coming into her room. But he hadn’t so much touched the door, and she was grateful.

She reached out to the other side of the bed, longing to see his smile. But she had left him decimated, and she hated herself for that.

Karen didn’t know it, but Matt had woken up at the same time on the other side of town. He faced her direction, as a fresh tear fell from his eye. This was the worst way to wake up.

He crafted the text message carefully.

"Karen, I want to give you space, so if you ignore this I won't send you anything else. Something doesn't feel right about this whole situation. I just want to know that you're ok. I'm sorry for screwing everything up. Foggy and I just want you to be safe. We love you."

He choked up as he wrote the last line. He knew something was up and he needed some indication that she was ok. But she didn’t respond. And it made him feel sick.

Richard saw the text as he walked to Karen’s room and deleted it immediately. He knocked gently on the wall, knowing about her glass trick as he checked the video feed of her room before he went to bed.

Karen jumped at the sound and ran to the door to remove the glass, opening it and sighing as she saw his face.

“Good morning.”

“Morning.” she said so quietly he almost didn’t hear her.

“I made you breakfast,” he smiled at her. “You are beautiful even after you just wake up, Karen.”

She used all of her strength to muster a small smile, getting up to walk out of her bedroom. All she could think was, _please don’t touch me over and over again_ , but he didn’t. She wasn’t doing well as a prisoner in his home, and she didn’t know how much longer she could last. She reminded herself that this was for Matt and Foggy. Just a little more time and they’d be safe. But she couldn’t shake the feeling that she was lying to herself.

There was a large spread on his kitchen table. Pancakes, waffles and various chopped fruits were carefully placed on individual plates, next to a bowl of homemade whipped cream. He looked like he was proud of himself, and she tried her best to look somewhat impressed as she grabbed small amounts of each item. She didn’t feel like she could eat, but she could feel him watching her, so she put a strawberry in her mouth and moved the food around her plate.

She couldn’t help but wonder what Matt would do in this situation. He definitely wouldn’t choose this option, she knew that much. But this was the only way she could protect him. Hell’s Kitchen _needed_ Daredevil. It could live without Karen Page.

 _You’re wrong._ She heard his angry voice tell her. _I would never choose this. I would always choose you._ She didn’t know how she’d imagined it. Matt Murdock had only ever been sweet to her. He might have been annoyed at her persistence, but he had never been angry with her. She knew her situation had taken a toll if she was imagining Matt Murdock yelling at her. But yet again, she couldn’t figure out a solution. And Richard just smiled at her from across the table.

*****

Foggy walked into the office looking for the beam of sunshine that normally greeted him. He looked into the kitchen and saw that it was empty. The only thing he found was a man filled with gloom in Matt’s office.

“What’s wrong, Murdock? You look like somebody died.”

Matt’s lips tightened as his best friend walked in. “Karen broke up with me.”

“Haha. You were really believable for a minute, Matt. But that’s a pretty terrible joke.”

Matt shook his head sadly.

“Wait, seriously? There’s no way…” He walked out of Matt’s office and searched for her in the conference room. “Karen?” He shouted, knowing deep down that she wasn’t there. He pulled out his phone and dialed her number, and Matt heard the ringing followed by her voicemail. Her voice set him off immediately.

Foggy saw the tears on his friend’s face and walked over to him, pulling him into a hug. “Why??”

Matt pulled away from Foggy’s tight hold so he could speak. “I pushed her away. I was too…” He sighed. “I’m in love with her, Foggy. And I screwed it all up.”

Foggy put his hand to his mouth as his friend leaned his head against his other hand and sniffled.

“We can fix this, Matt. There’s no way she was scared that easily.”

“She wants me to leave her alone. She compared me to…”

Foggy knew the words before he spoke them. “No she _didn’t_ ,” he said angrily. “Why in the hell would she… _No_. I don’t believe it. Karen wouldn’t be that hurtful even if you _were_ being too clingy.”

“She said she’d already dated one obsessive person and she asked me not to make her go through that again. Like she thought I would do the same thing...”

Foggy was completely bewildered. He knew Karen. And that sounded so completely unlike her that he realized the problem instantly.

“She’s pushing you away. She said the only thing that would make you back off, Matt.”

“Because I wouldn’t listen to her. Because I didn't believe she’d want to break up with me. She didn't need a boyfriend after everything she went through. I was too selfish to see that.”

“No, Matt, I saw the way she looked at you. She was happy. And your gut is usually right. Answer this for me: do you think _he’s_ behind this?”

“I’m having time sifting through the feelings I have for her and what I think is actually happening.” Matt said honestly. “She said she needed time off, Foggy. That she was going to go back home for a while because it’d be too hard.”

“That doesn’t sound like her either. Even when this place feels like it’s been lit on fire, she’s here trying to put out the flames. Something is wrong, Matt.”

*******

The moment the door closed behind Richard, Karen got up and walked around the apartment, looking for anything out of the ordinary. It looked like a home out of a modern design magazine. Everything had clean lines; the furniture square and beige to contrast with the darker tones of the room. He really liked his dark grays, probably reveling at how sophisticated words like “slate” and “smoke” and “stone” sounded out of the mouth of a decorator. They were still gray. They were still suffocating.

She started by trying to open doors to each of the rooms. They were all locked with the exception of her room and the hall bathroom. Then she moved on to drawers and cupboards. His kitchen was immaculate. The counters were almost empty, and he had sleek glassware and white plates - nothing like the house she grew up in. Her mom loved to bake, and the cabinets were stuffed with dozens of baking pans, pastry tools, and cake tins. The cupboards in this house didn’t have more than a few items, prominently displayed behind glass doors. Maybe it was because she knew the man, but it creeped her out.

Karen found a bottle of whiskey and opened it immediately, taking a large swig. She couldn’t help but think that there was more to this place than met the eye. He couldn’t have everything locked away. She knew there was a possibility that he’d go over the video footage after he made it into work, but it was a risk she was willing to take in order to find something on him.

The rest of the apartment was just as clean, every drawer neatly organized with office supplies and bills. She found a letter addressed to a Richard Smith at NYCArchitecture - a name she had laughed off when she found it because their logo looked like they were trying too hard to be trendy. She’d cringed at the fact that she had put it at the end of her list because they were just a couple of blocks from Nelson & Murdock.

It was one more lie he’d told her. She sat on the couch, angry that she couldn’t find anything that could help her blackmail him back. And even then, he was crazy enough to blackmail her into staying with him. What could possibly scare a man who was willing to go to those lengths?

She took another swig of whiskey and stared at his TV. Then she saw it. His TV stand had an open shelf for his Blu ray player, but it also had seemingly fake glossy panels. She walked over to the top right panel and pushed on it, smiling as it opened right up to her.

It contained a small mahogany box, something she would have considered beautiful if she hadn’t been so desperate to see what it contained. The box had several items she wouldn’t have taken a second glance at if it had been anywhere else. She found the coaster that had her phone number on it. She had been in a hurry that day and was surprised that he had asked. She had grabbed it off the bar as she picked up her to-go order and wrote the ten digits quickly. The ring of water that had been left from whoever used it was dried now, the image worn away from where the liquid had destroyed it.

That was innocent. She regretted it, but there was nothing she could do about it. He had been charming, and despite the fact that she was focused on her day, he had made her laugh as she waited for her order. _Never again_ , she thought. There was a formerly crumpled napkin, which she thought was strange until she saw the lipstick smudge. It was champagne pink, a color she wore every now and then when she took the extra time to get ready. The last time she remembered wearing it was a few weeks ago, at a late night dinner with the boys. She hadn’t seen it since.

She lifted a wooden divider from the box and shivers went up her spine as she found the next item - that very same lipstick. She pulled the top off and confirmed her suspicion. _How in the hell had he found it?_ She dropped it inside the box and found her pepper spray next. She couldn't find it the night he’d attacked her and now she knew why. She put it back into her pocket.

The last item she found was a necklace she had worn on their first date. It had been a gift from Kevin for her 15th birthday. Tears came to her eyes as she yanked it from the box and clutched it in her and the box fell to the floor, spilling its contents onto the ground. He must have stolen it from her apartment the day of the gas incident. She was seething with anger.

She put the necklace back on before bending over to put everything back into place. Then she found a flash drive. It had a wifi symbol on it, which she hadn't seen before. She turned his entertainment system and put it into the Blu ray player. The flash drive popped up on the TV and there was one folder entitled “Karen.”

She covered her mouth, running to the bathroom to throw up. She figured it would be something like this, but she didn’t want to believe it. As soon as she finished hurling up the small amount of food she’d eaten and a very large amount of whiskey, she washed her hands and quickly walked back into the room, determined to see what he could possibly have on her.

There were about a hundred photos in the folder. She counted her outfits and figured it had been from eight different days. Most of them seemed to be on her lunch breaks, near the office. A couple dozen were from before each of their dates. She was waiting outside the restaurant they were meeting in one group and sitting at a table outside in the other. Twenty or so photos were from a Saturday when she ran errands. The last several photos brought tears to her eyes. She was with Matt, hugging him and smiling. She thought for a moment that she looked genuinely happy, never before seeing a smile that wide on her own face in any photo or mirror. Then she found the damning evidence of her touching his chin where he was bruised.

Karen yanked the flash drive out of the player and turned everything off, clutching the drive to her chest. She hated that he’d had anything like this, but the thing that bothered her the most was that those photos were the only evidence of her time with Matt. She couldn't come to grips with the fact that she could never see him again. Tears streamed down her cheek as she put the drive back into the box and closed the compartment.

******

Matt and Foggy canceled every meeting they had for the day.

Karen didn’t answer any of Foggy’s phone calls. When he saw Matt’s worried face after he found out that he’d called her six times, Foggy told him that he didn’t even know what clingy was.

But he gave up on getting a call from her. Instead, he went to her apartment and buzzed 10 times with no result. Matt was still working on the list, and Foggy took three more names and went to each firm. Several very annoyed secretaries allowed him to see these men face to face, but none of them were the man he had been looking for. Before he knew it, it was 6:00 PM.

*****

Karen did her best to distract herself throughout the day. She also tried to eat, but that was a non-starter. She made a sandwich and cut it in half, wiping the blade clean and hiding it underneath her plate as she went back to her bedroom. She took a few bites, but the main reason she went through the motions was so she could arm herself. She hid the knife under a pillow on the other side of the bed along with her pepper spray.

She fell asleep quickly and woke up to Richard running his fingers through her hair.

"Hey," she said drunkenly.

" _Karen_ , have you been drinking?"

She looked up pulled away from him once she realized that he wasn't Matt. "Yup."

"I really wish you wouldn't do that."

"Listen, Richard, you are the one who thinks you want to be with me.” She said, slurring her words and indicating to her self half heartedly. “ _This_ is Karen Page. If you really think I'm perfect, you are _sadly_ mistaken."

“I think you're better than this.” His tone was condescending, but concerned. She rolled her eyes.

“The person you’re imagining is nothing more than a goddamn lie.”

“ _Language_ , Karen.”

“Richard, I have never and will never let someone control me like this. I will say whatever the fuck I want and I will definitely not become some fake ideal woman for you.”

His tone turned angry, and she remembered how scared of him she’d been before. “Karen, you don’t have the higher ground here. You won’t find anything to use against me like you’ve been trying to do. I’m no longer the man whose texts you just ignore because you’re lusting after your boss. You don’t have control anymore.”

His anger didn’t matter to her anymore. “I’m not going to live like this forever! So _tell_ me, what is the end game here? What do I need to do to prove to you that we shouldn’t be together?”

“ _Try_ , Karen. Make an actual effort. Earn my trust back and stop treating me like some evil man. Be the woman I fell in love with.”

She cringed. "How do I know you'll follow through with what you said? Especially if this doesn’t work out?"

"I have no interest in Matt Murdock if he's out of your life, Karen. And as long as you don't run back to him, I will say nothing on the matter if you decide this isn't working."

“And how long do you really think that will take?”

“We can give it a week.”

The number was so arbitrary, but she didn’t really think that logic was involved in this scenario anyway. "Alright, then I'll give this a shot." She hiccuped and choked bI’ll that rose in her throat.

"I grabbed some Italian on the way home. You really should eat."

"Sure," she said, stumbling off the bed. "He grabbed the bottle from her nightstand and reached under her pillow to take the knife and pepper spray that she had stashed. She dug her fingernails into her palms as she sat at the table with him and ate in silence.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt And Foggy get closer to finding Richard. Karen descends into the darkness.

Matt didn’t know why he felt himself gravitating toward Karen’s favorite diner.

It had been one week since their first date. She’d been gone for two days.

He went to her neighborhood to see how long it had been since she’d been at her apartment, and his senses told him she hadn't been home for at least 48 hours. He thought he may have smelled Richard’s scent, but he couldn’t tell if it’s just his imagination. 

Last night’s search was a bust, but with Foggy’s help, there were only seven more people to check out. They were meeting in a half an hour to find results in a seemingly impossible search.

Matt didn't trust his own judgment right now. Despite his gut feeling that it would hurt more than help, he went inside. The diner was busier than last time, but Matt heard Linda tell a customer she’d be right back the moment she saw him walk in the door.

“Matt?” She said as she grabbed his elbow gently. “It’s Linda.”

“Hi, Linda-”

“Please tell me Karen is with you…” She seemed worried, clutching his elbow without noticing.

“I’m afraid not. Have you seen her recently?”

Linda drifted off as she looked over to the booth she had seen Karen in last. “She always comes in on Saturday mornings. The last time she was here, something just felt.. off. I shouldn’t have let them leave…”

“Them?”

Linda thought for a split second, wondering if she was about to divulge too much information to a man she barely knew. She went with her better instinct. “She came in with a man. He was really creepy, but she kept smiling at me like everything was alright. I have the image burned into my brain. I think she was scared.”

“When was this?”

“Two days ago.”

****

Karen had a lot of time to think over the last few days.

She jumped from scared to guilty to self-loathing. Most of her thoughts ended in the darkest of places.

She was worried about Matt. She hoped that he had given up his search, but if he didn’t she could only think of the consequences. Fisk would come after everyone if she didn’t pull this off, and Matt’s compliance with her wishes was integral to the plan, which was poorly formed and depended on Richard letting her go after she “tried” with him. She felt like she was in her own personal limbo.

Richard had been overly sweet to her for the last 12 hours, hoping she’d return the niceties. She just couldn’t do it. She didn’t try to beat the shit out of him when he attempted to kiss her goodnight, and in her opinion, she deserved a thank you. If she had it her way, he’d be walking into work with two black eyes for that little stunt.

He’d tried to guilt her yet again after a moment _he_ thought was awkward, but anyone else would realize was just scary. This man who thought he was a _good guy_ … She shuddered at the thought. He figured since he offered her food and clean towels that he was nice. Any man who didn’t realize they had a hostage instead of a house guest couldn’t be reasoned with.

Karen didn’t know how Richard had found the time to stalk her since he had a job that should be time-consuming, but he proved her right by going into the office on a Saturday. He explained that he had work to catch up on, but she didn’t care about details. She was just happy that she wouldn't have to act like she wasn’t repulsed by him for a few hours.

Once he left, she made a bee-line for the bar, seeing that all of his liquor was gone.

"Fuck you very much," she said under her breath. She didn’t notice that he’d taken the whiskey from her room until late last night. Her pepper spray and knife were more important anyway, and he’d obviously discovered them since they were gone when she went back to bed.

Karen walked over to the TV stand and saw that the mahogany box was gone. He really meant it when he said he was watching her. She’d hoped it was an empty threat. She hadn’t seen her phone in days, had no access to the internet, and had a very shitty selection of DVDs to pick from. _He thought this would make you want to be with him_? She thought angrily.

She went back to her room to lay down. She barely slept last night after Richard’s almost-kiss. She still had no appetite and felt herself sinking into a deep depression. She hoped Matt was doing better than she was.

*****

Matt’s stomach lurched as he felt along his list.

There were only two potential offices left. He couldn’t believe it. They were getting closer and closer to Nelson and Murdock, which Karen had told him was pretty unlikely.

Unless Richard had lied to her.

He was banking on that possibility. He kept thinking back to the night at the bar and how possessive he was of her. The man had climbed a fire escape to scare her, for God’s sake. Foggy was grabbing sandwiches at a favorite lunch spot as Matt stood outside and tried to think of a new game plan if this one failed.

Her phone was turned off. The police still hadn’t found Richard, and thankfully Mahoney believed them and agreed to help in whatever way he could because the officers who had lost Richard didn’t seem to care too much. They became even more withdrawn when Matt had told them that it was their screw up that had gotten them here and if they cared about their jobs, they would find the man who’d attempted to kill his friend.

Mahoney couldn’t file a missing person’s report since she’d told Matt that she was leaving the city. A small voice inside Matt’s head told him that if she was alright and found out that he’d reported her missing… It wouldn’t go well anyway. Mahoney did try to track her cell phone, however. The last place it had been turned on was at a coffee shop a block away from them.

Foggy put his phone back into his pocket and handed Matt his sandwich as they sat at a table outside the restaurant. If it were up to him, they’d keep going, but Foggy needed sustenance after their search, and he knew it was better if they both weren’t starving.

“Well, she’s not in Vermont.” He said with a bite in his mouth.

“How do you know that?” Matt asked, confused.

“Because I just called her old house. It wasn’t hard. There are only two Pages in Fagan Corners, Vermont. And they live together. So with the exception of her staying with a friend for three days and not so much as visiting her family, I think she’s still in New York.”

Matt shook his head, knowing how mad Karen would be if she found out that they had called her parents, but that didn’t bother him. What was upsetting was the fact that if she wasn’t where she told him she’d be. Where she’d be safe.

“If she didn’t go home, and she hasn’t been to her apartment in days… Where the hell is she?” Matt asked, knowing the answer.

“I’ve thought about Karen taking a vacation, but that seems unlikely. She doesn’t have the funds to go to a hotel when she’s paying for her apartment. I think we both know the answer.”

They ate quickly and walked up the street to the location Mahoney had given them. It was a coffee shop across from the second to the last office on his list. Foggy looked at Matt as his body stiffened.

“This is the one. He’s here right now. I’d say 20 floors up.”

“Seriously? Thank God. Do you want me to get visual confirmation?”

“No, Foggy. Who knows what he’d do if he saw you. He’s here. I’m positive.”

“What do we do?”

Matt knew that they could call the police and they would arrest him after his attempt on Karen’s life. But he was worried that Karen might be somewhere other than his apartment. He knew the best way to get information - real, reliable information, was to interrogate him himself. If it came to that.

“We are going to wait for him to leave and then follow him home. I’ll run home and get the suit and come back to figure out which apartment is his. I don’t trust the police to get Karen out safely if she _is_ there, and I need to know what he knows if he doesn’t have her.”

“You’re positive this is the way? We can’t screw this up, Matt.”

“We won’t.”

*****

Richard came home and started dinner. He seemed to be in a good mood since he didn’t get upset when she told him yet again that she wasn’t feeling well. He told her fresh air might be a good idea, and she looked to the door, but he pointed upstairs. She nodded and figured she’d take what she could get.

Karen looked over the city and took a deep breath. At least she had this. Dark clouds rolled in and it started to rain. She smiled as the wind blew some drops in her direction and wiped a drop from her face, not realizing it was a tear until she felt them streaming from her eyes.

She sat against a metal beam and stifled sobs. All she had was time to think about how terribly she’d treated Matt. She had said the only thing that would keep him away, but it was so incredibly unfair. Maybe she could tell him once she got away from Richard. _If_ she got away from Richard.

Then she heard his voice. 

"Karen?" he said, bending over and running his gloved hand over her face. If he hadn’t touched her, she wouldn’t believe it was really happening. She stood up and he pulled her into his arms. She gave in slightly and tilted her head as she blinked away her tears.

"Oh my God, Matt," she whispered, remembering where they were. "Please go."

"I’d love to. Come with me."

She pushed him away from her. "I don't want to, Matt," she said, her tone firm.

"Then why does everything about you tell me the opposite. What are you afraid of?" He touched her face again and she leaned against his hand. 

“It’s complicated.”

"This doesn’t make any sense. You were so happy. _We_ were so happy."

She shook his hand off her. “It doesn’t matter, Matt. Things have changed.”

"Say it, Karen. Tell me you aren't falling in love with me."

"I'm not," she said, knowing she wasn't lying to him. She pushed him away and took a few steps back as he stood there dumbfounded.  

Her heart rate remained the same and it broke him. He just nodded. "Fine, but I won't leave without you. You don't have to see me again after this."

“I can’t, Matt. _Please_ leave. _Please.”_ Her voice was desperate. 

" _Can’t_ _?_ We both know you are a prisoner here. Why are you fighting me on this? What does he have on you?" 

She closed her eyes and shook her head. Tears streamed down her face.

"Wait… Is he threatening _me?_ Karen whatever it is, we can take care of it." 

"Matt, he's could come up at any minute. Please listen to me. I have a plan. I'm going to get away. But I can't see you again."

"What is it, Karen? What could be so important that you'd be willing to lose everything in your life that mattered to you?"

She knew he wouldn't leave without an explanation. "He knows who you _are_ , Matt. And he threatened to tell everyone you've come up against. Starting with Fisk."

He took a deep breath and put his hand to his head. 

"Matt, I'm going to find a way out. But we can't do this. I can't let anything happen to you because of me."

"Karen, I don't care if he outs me. You are more important."

"Fisk will come after you and everything you care about. _Including Foggy_. I need to do this my way, and hopefully, it will work." 

"We'll figure it out, Karen. _Please_ , let’s get you away from him and we’ll come up with a plan!”

"I don't think so..." Came a menacing voice. 

"Damn it," Matt said, angrily. He had failed to notice Richard a second time. And this time he had a loaded gun, and his finger was on the trigger.

Karen stepped in front of Matt, blocking him with as much of her body as possible and Matt let out a quiet, "Karen."

"Richard, he's going to leave now. Please put the gun away."

Richard turned bright red, and she could see that he was clutching the gun tightly. “You think I haven’t heard you crying over him every night? And saying his name in your sleep? You won’t get past this until he’s out of the picture.” His tone shifted to calm. "Karen get out of the way. I won’t ask again."

" _No_ , Richard. I'm not moving. Please put the gun down."

“Karen, please get behind me,” Matt said quietly.

“Richard,” she pleaded. “He’s going to leave. Let’s just go back downstairs.” 

"He'll never give up. I'm done dealing with this. Someone needs to put this vigilante down."  
Matt placed his hand on his billy club, trying to figure out how to stop him without Karen getting hurt. 

"Come over here," Richard said, gesturing with the gun. 

"Don't do it, Karen," Matt whispered.

"Shut it, Daredevil," he said. Karen moved forward, and Matt reached out to touch her, but Richard pointed the gun at her head. “I’m just trying to give you a good life, Karen! Why can’t you see that?”

“Because you are pointing a gun at me, _Richard_.” She spoke calmly, and reached her hand toward his, pushing the weapon down. “And I don't want anything _given_ to me. Please take a breath. We can figure this out.”

Richard looked over her shoulder and glared at Daredevil. “You’re wrong, Karen.” He shoved her away from him, and she had to grab a beam as she tripped toward the opening. Daredevil reached out to stop her from falling, but Richard pulled the trigger, shooting him in the chest. Daredevil lost his footing, the force of the bullet causing him to fall backward. Karen tried to stop him from falling, but his body was too heavy and she fell over the edge with him, wrapping her hands around his torso. She clung to him knowing they were falling to their deaths, but he surprised her as he reached toward the sky. He found a chain and grabbed it, groaning as they plummeted through the air.

Richard leaned over the edge and aimed the weapon at the two of them as they fell and swung into the floor below his finished apartment. He yelled angrily, not noticing how close to the edge he was and slipping on the metal beam, wet from the falling rain. Matt heard his screams as Richard fell, hitting the ground below him. He had to resist the urge to vomit, feeling the pain from the shot he had just taken, and worrying about the fact that he had landed on top of Karen, who was now unconscious.

He shook her awake carefully, praying that she was alright despite the fact that his senses told him she was alive. “Karen? Karen!"

She came to, blinking her eyes and remembering where she was. 

"Why did you grab me? How could you do something so stupid? You could have died!"

"I didn’t care." Tears fell from her eyes as she pulled his face toward hers and kissed him. "I love you, Matt."

He was shocked. "But… Your heart rate didn't change. You said you weren't in love with me."

"I said I wasn't _falling_ in love with you. I hoped a lie would work since I was trying to get you to leave before everything went to hell. Which it did." 

" _Wow_ , Page."

He heard the sirens from a few blocks away. 

"Richard is dead."

She nodded. "You need to get out of here."

"No. I’m not leaving you."

"I have a much better chance at convincing them that he was at fault if you aren't here. There's no way they'll let you get away with keeping your identity after someone _died_ , Matt." He didn't like her plan, but it made the most sense. "Leave before they get here. I'll come to your place if they don't arrest me."

He hated the plan even more after she said that. 

"Go, Matt. Please!" He touched her face and cringed as he helped her up. He ran to the stairs and disappeared as quietly as when he had shown himself to her.  

Karen walked to the elevator, preparing herself for the conversation she was about to have. She took a breath as she pressed “1” and whimpered as she felt the pain from her injuries.

Mahoney ran to her as she exited the elevator, pulling her into his arms and letting her go as she winced. “Thank God you’re ok, Karen!” She was bleeding from the hard landing and her bruises were already beginning to show.

He walked her to an ambulance, and she passed by a lump in the street covered with a blanket. An EMT looked her over but she brushed them off, trying to explain what had happened.

Karen told them that he had forced her to come with him by threatening Matt and Foggy. She took them to the floor where Richard had kept her, and told them about the floor above. Then she explained that Richard had tried to throw her off of the building and she had managed to grab a hanging chain to swing into the floor below his apartment. 

"So did he fall? Or did he jump?" Mahoney asked.

“I don’t know. I woke up like this.” She touched her face and pulled away, looking at the blood. “I can’t believe I’m alive.” 

******

Karen told Mahoney almost everything. His treatment of her, the mahogany box, and the fact that he had video cameras throughout the apartment. They didn’t let her take anything with her for the time being, but she didn’t want to go back inside that hellhole anyway. She was too worried about Matt to go to the hospital, so they let her go, letting her know it wasn’t the best idea. 

Karen smiled as Officer Walker opened the door to the police car. He looked especially worried and apologized profusely for letting her go to the office alone the day he was watching her apartment. She insisted that it wasn’t his fault, dozing off on the drive to the address she had given him. Karen punched in the code to Matt’s door and walked upstairs, knocking several times with no reply. _A cell phone would be really great right about now_ , she thought, annoyed at the fact that he had taken it from her.

Karen wondered if Matt was at the hospital like he should be, and how he would explain his bullet wound. She worried that he didn’t make it that far, and prayed that he wasn’t bleeding to death somewhere. She had no way of knowing, and she was angry with herself for not seeking him out and instead sinking in a corner of his hallway and falling asleep against the wall.

She woke up to a man in only his boxers lifting her into his arms and letting out a small groan. She fell asleep again to the familiar smell, her face nestled in the crook of his neck, the only place she truly belonged.

When she finally woke up in the morning, she was in his arms. She breathed him in and wondered how much pain he was feeling because he let her sleep there. She lifted off of him carefully and left the bedroom, sinking into the couch and trying to collect her thoughts. She noticed that she'd been stitched up in not one, but two different places; on the back of her neck and behind her shoulder. How she’d slept through that, she didn't know. 

There were bandages in various places of her body, including her arms and back where her shirt was torn. Her ribs had been wrapped and she could barely turn her body without wincing. Apparently falling onto the ground of a construction site with a ripped vigilante landing on top of you top was not as painless as she'd hoped.

She stared out the window as the sun came up, trying to figure out how to proceed. She thought about the lump in the street. Blood had spilled from underneath the blanket, and she cringed as she remembered that it could have been her and Matt instead. She hoped Matt was alright with what had happened. For her, it was easy. Richard was dead and he wouldn't reveal Matt's secret. Fisk wouldn't have a reason to kill the love of her life. She didn't know if any guilt would come later, but she didn't give a shit.

She heard his snoring and watched him through the open door to his room as tears seeped from her eyes. She had complicated it since the day he'd met her, and she was exhausted from the guilt. Why did he want to be with her when she had brought him this much pain and worry? And what would happen when Fisk eventually put the pieces together? She picked up a piece of paper and a pen and wrote hard into the page so that he could read it with his fingers. 

"Matt,

I'm so sorry for the pain I've put you through. I come to the conclusion that it's for the best that I leave New York. This time you'll know that I am actually safe, and you don't need to worry about me any longer. You have saved my life so many times, and I know I'll never be able to repay you for that. But the best thing for you right now is to be with someone who doesn't..."

She heard him rolling over in his sleep and then frantically search for her on his bed with his hands. He turned over and looked in her direction, sighing happily as he found her. He got up slowly and walked over to her, and she crumpled the paper in her hand and hid it behind her. Like that would be enough. 

"Karen? Are you ok? I thought you left for a second..."

"I'm here, Matt." She said, seeing the enormous bruise on his chest. "Oh my God," She covered her mouth with her other hand and sniffled. 

"I'm sorry you came back to an empty apartment. I was waiting near the crime scene so that I knew where you ended up, and then I had to let Foggy know that you were ok." He paused. "What is that paper in your hand?"

"It's nothing... I... don't worry about it."

"I'm glad to see that you aren't that accomplished at lying to me anymore." He said, his tone implying that he was not trying to hurt her, but the words did anyway. He noticed and a sad look spread across his face.

"Hey, don't feel bad... That wasn't a dig. I know you were doing what you had to do."

"Yeah," she said with tears in her eyes. "It really doesn't matter, Matt. I... " She couldn't complete the sentence. _This is going great,_  she thought. 

"What were you writing?" He walked toward her and gently grabbed the hand with her note in it. He massaged the outside and she dropped it like he had pressed a non-existent release button. 

He sat on the couch and uncrumpled it, his eyes got wide at the first line, then filled with tears with each one thereafter. "You... you were planning on leaving?"

She sat next to him with enough space so that they weren't touching. She knew she wasn't strong enough to feel his warmth and still go through with this.

“I don't understand. He's dead, Karen...”

"Matt, he’s not the only problem. If Fisk finds out about me, things will be a hundred times worse. It's for the b-"

"You're wrong." He said, re-crumpling the paper and dropping it on the floor. "You couldn't be more wrong. Why would you ever think that this was the solution?"

"Matt, you don't love me. It’d be better for everyone if I left."

"Wrong again."

Her lip was quivering. She didn't have much more resolve left. Only the feeling that she was bad for him. She knew that staying was selfish, but she loved him and couldn’t find the strength to walk away like she knew she should.

"Well, I don't love _you_. I just said that so you would leave and not get yourself into a world of trouble."

"That's also a lie. My senses must have really been off earlier because there is no way you said that with a regular heartbeat." He cracked a small smile. 

"This isn't funny, Matt. He shot you because of me! That’s unforgivable.” The last word trailed off as she sobbed. “He connected you to Daredevil because of me and he was going to out you to the world. Your whole life would have been over. No more law license. Probably jail. And eventually death at the hands of Wilson Fisk." She took a breath and tried to calm down. "He may be dead, but this will never be over. You can't be with someone who had trouble follow them like I do. You can't..." 

He stopped her with his lips. Their tears mixed together as they pathetically touched each other as carefully as possible without making their injuries worse. She pulled away.

"Karen, I'm in love with you and there is nothing you can do or say that will change that."

 _Why did he have to say it out loud_? She knew this wouldn't be easy. But why did he have to say the words that would make it impossible for her to stick with her decision? Words that made her feel like she was the luckiest person in the world. 

"You're just trying to make me stay. You can't possibly..."

"Love you? Why?"

"Because I am so incredibly broken, Matt. Why would you ever... You can do so much better."

He looked angry now. She had never seen him this mad with her. Then she realized he was mad at someone else. "If I had known he would have done this… I would have thrown him off those steps in a way that would have made it so none of this ever happened." 

"You don't mean that, Matty! Don't you see what I've done to you? You care more than this. You aren't a killer."

"Karen, some people do more harm than good in this world. I don't feel bad in the least that he died. And that is not a negative. You are more important than anything. You are the reason I want to get up in the morning after a long night of breaking myself. You are the reason I want to do _good_. Please, stop blaming yourself for all of this. You were unfortunate enough to have met one man who was unhinged." He squeezed her hand in his. "I'm the one who should feel guilty. I'm the one who feels lucky because you ended up with me because you met that asshole."

She didn't know what to say. She surprised both of them by chuckling. "That is pretty terrible, Matt."

" _See_? I'm not all good either. You should never feel like you don't deserve me. You have done nothing wrong." He kissed her forehead and pushed her hair away from her face.

"This is a pretty heavy conversation for a couple that has only been on two dates."

"We aren't a conventional couple, Karen."

She smiled. "Fine."

"Fine?" He couldn’t hide his excitement. "You aren't going to leave?"

She placed his hand on her heart. "No. I'm not." 

He kissed her and groaned as she touched his chest. She pulled away quickly and looked at his bruise. "How in the hell is there no bullet wound?"

"The black parts of my suit are bulletproof. I didn't know for sure until last night." He groaned again as he raised his arm to rub her hand. "It still feels like I've been shot, though..." She kissed it lightly and got up to grab an ice pack. 

"Can we please go back to bed?" He asked her, yawning. 

"Yeah." They walked over to his bed and she took her jeans off and slipped her bra out from under her t-shirt with his help. 

"How in the hell did you give me stitches last night?"

"I really don't know. I was scared to death that you'd wake up."

"I didn't sleep super well at that place. I was always worried that he'd show up..." Her words drifted off. "He told me that if I stayed there for a little while, I would have the option to leave. I just had to end things with you. I really don't know if he meant that." Matt shook his head and clenched his fists. 

"Matt, I'm so sorry for lying to you. Telling you it was over was the hardest…" She choked back a sob. “You’re nothing like him...”

"Karen, you have nothing to apologize for. We can move past this. And honestly, if you need space... Just tell me. Please just don't leave for good."

"I won't." She said, knowing space was the last thing she wanted since he was the only thing in the world that made her feel safe. "I'll make this up to you, I promise." 

He kissed her. "Stop being sorry for something that isn't your fault. Just be here. With me."

"I can do that."  


End file.
